Trump Proposes Stricter Conditions to Iran for Peace Plan

US president says he’s not rushing to sign deal

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja

President Donald Trump has tightened the terms of a possible framework aimed at ending the war in Iran and has sent the revised proposal back to the country for consideration, according to three officials.

It was not immediately clear what changes had been made to the agreement, a New York Times report said yesterday.

Trump has expressed concerns about portions of the potential deal that would involve unfreezing Iranian funds, two officials said. He has been sharply critical of former President Barack Obama for doing the same in the decade‑old agreement that was signed to curb Iran’s nuclear programme.

The president has also been frustrated by the length of time it has taken for Iran to respond to U.S. proposals, one official said. The proposals have been crafted with the help of intermediaries, including Pakistan.

The official added that Trump’s changes—a new, tougher proposal—were possibly intended to accelerate the process by applying pressure on Iran to accept the framework already sent to Iran’s supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, for approval.

Reaching the supreme leader has proven difficult, so any alterations to the memorandum of understanding could introduce further delays.

On Friday, Trump met for two hours in the Situation Room with top aides to discuss an end to the war, but left the meeting without an announcement.

The framework would effectively end the U.S.–Israeli military campaign against Iran in exchange for Iran lifting its blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial waterway for oil and gas shipping. The strait was open for trade before the bombing campaign against Iran, which began on Feb. 28.

Some of the most contentious issues, such as the future of Iran’s nuclear programme, would be deferred to later rounds of talks, the NYT report added.

Meanwhile, the U.S. and Iran have yet to sign an agreement to end the war that has dragged on into its fourth month, with Trump saying over the weekend that he is in “no hurry” to make a deal.

In an interview with his daughter‑in‑law, Lara Trump, on Fox News, the president said he is pushing for a deal that would ensure Iran never acquires a nuclear weapon. He added that he would prefer the pact to be reached quickly, but is not rushing the process. The president also warned of further military action if negotiations break down.

“I’d like to say I’m in a hurry because gasoline prices are going to come tumbling down, but if you’re going to be in a hurry, you’re not going to make a good deal,” Trump said. “And slowly but surely we’re getting, I think, what we want, and if we don’t get what we want we’re going to end it a different way.”

“We’re going to make a great deal, [otherwise] we’ll just go back and finish it off militarily,” he added.

U.S. and Iranian negotiators have been working to reach a deal that would end the conflict for weeks, while the war remains in a tenuous ceasefire. The conflict has disrupted global energy markets and pushed inflation to its highest level since May 2023 after Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz when the war broke out.

Trump has demanded that Iran agree to never obtain a nuclear weapon and immediately reopen the Strait as part of any peace deal.

The president ended a meeting at the White House on Friday without a decision on the deal, after saying he would make a “final determination” during the meeting.

In the Fox interview, Trump also said he had added language to the deal to prohibit Iran from purchasing a nuclear weapon in addition to prohibitions on development, a CNBC report said.