President Donald Trump said he was meeting with advisers in the White House Situation Room to make a “final determination” on negotiations with Iran.
Over six weeks into the ceasefire, negotiations with Tehran have waxed and waned. After a flurry of diplomatic activity and speculation, Trump indicated that the conclusion of negotiations was close in a Truth Social post.
After laying out several demands and details, the president said he “will be meeting now, in the Situation Room, to make a final determination.”
In the post, he also said the naval blockade of Iran would “now be lifted,” though it was unclear whether he meant immediately or as part of a deal contingent on Iran’s agreement.
The Washington Examiner reached out to the White House and the War Department for clarification.
Just an hour earlier, U.S. Central Command touted the success of the blockade.
“U.S. forces continue to enforce the blockade against Iran. As of May 29, 115 commercial vessels have been redirected to ensure no commerce enters or leaves Iranian ports,” a post on its X account read.
If the lifting of the blockade is confirmed, it would mark the most significant development over the past month. The naval blockade is key to the U.S. strategy of strangling Iran’s economy, doing almost as much damage to the economy as the six weeks of intensive bombing.
Trump has suggested a deal with Iran was imminent numerous times in the past few weeks, but the possibility fell through each time. Tehran has publicly maintained its maximalist stances in negotiations throughout, with Trump maintaining red lines on Iran’s nuclear capabilities, support for its proxy network, and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. He reiterated his red lines in his Truth Social post announcing his imminent “final determination.”
TENTATIVE AGREEMENT WITH IRAN WOULD TURN CLOCK BACK TO FEB. 27
“Iran must agree that they will never have a Nuclear Weapon or Bomb. The Hormuz Strait must be immediately open, no tolls, for unrestricted shipping traffic, in both directions. All water mines (bombs), if any, will be terminated (we have removed, through detonation, numerous such mines with our great underwater mine sweepers. Iran will complete the immediate removal and/or detonation of any mines that are left, which will not be many!),” he wrote.
When asked if the U.S. and Iran were close to a deal on Thursday, Vice President JD Vance told reporters that, “We’re not there yet, but we’re very close, and we’re going to keep on working at it.”