US says Iran deal still possible, as Trump tempers expectations

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said a resolution to the conflict with Iran could be reached on Monday, while President Donald Trump moderated expectations about the timing of a deal.

The United States and Iran have observed a ceasefire since April 8, with mediators urging a negotiated settlement. Iran has imposed restrictions on Gulf shipping, and the U.S. has blockaded Iranian ports.

“We thought we might have some news last night, maybe today, I wouldn’t read too much into it,” Rubio told reporters in New Delhi, where he is on an official visit. “We have what I think is a pretty solid thing on the table in terms of their ability to open up the straits, get the straits open.”

Rubio’s comments come after Trump said Sunday that he had instructed negotiators not to “rush” the agreement, even as Washington and Tehran signaled progress.

“I have informed my representatives not to rush into a deal in that time is on our side,” a post on the president’s Truth Social account read on Sunday. “The Blockade will remain in full force and effect until an agreement is reached, certified and signed.”

A separate Truth Social post added that the deal “has been largely negotiated, subject to finalization between the United States of America, the Islamic Republic of Iran and the various other Countries.”

Iran’s Tasnim news agency said Sunday that key clauses of a possible agreement remained “unresolved at this time,” including the status of frozen Iranian assets.

The war, which began after the United States and Israel attacked the Islamic Republic on February 28 and was followed by Iranian missile and drone strikes across the region, has caused market volatility. The hint of optimism caused oil prices to fall nearly five percent on Monday.

North Sea Brent crude slipped to $99.41 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate to $92.49.

– Nuclear issue –

Rubio told The New York Times that an agreement with Iran had gained regional support, but a nuclear deal could not be achieved “in 72 hours on the back of a napkin.” “Right now, we have seven or eight countries in the region that are endorsing this approach, and we’re prepared to move forward on this approach,” he said.

Earlier, Rubio had suggested a bargain could end the regional war as early as Sunday, but Trump again tempered expectations. A Truth Social post read: “If I make a deal with Iran, it will be a good and proper one,” adding that “It isn’t even fully negotiated yet.”

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that he and Trump had agreed that “any final agreement with Iran must eliminate the nuclear threat entirely.”

– ‘Lasting peace’ –

Iranian officials confirmed a draft agreement exists but noted that, despite the long‑standing U.S. demand to halt uranium enrichment, talks on Iran’s nuclear program would be deferred for 60 days after any deal.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told state television that Tehran was “still prepared to assure the world that we are not seeking nuclear weapons,” though it was unclear whether this promise would be included in the text.

According to Iran’s Fars news agency, “sanctions on oil, gas, petrochemicals and their derivatives would be temporarily lifted during the negotiation period so that Iran can freely sell its products.”

Leaders from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Egypt, Jordan and Bahrain, along with representatives from Turkey and Pakistan, joined a call with Trump on Saturday to discuss the deal.

Pakistan, which mediated historic face‑to‑face negotiations between U.S. and Iranian delegations in April, hopes to host another round of talks “very soon,” Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said. He added that Pakistan’s army chief Asim Munir, who visited Tehran on Friday and Saturday, also joined the call, which he said “moved ongoing peace efforts forward.”

– ‘Back into chaos’ –

Israel’s military continued to strike what it says are Hezbollah targets in southern and eastern Lebanon, despite an April 17 ceasefire that has been broken by both sides.

Iran‑backed Hezbollah pulled Lebanon into the conflict by attacking Israel on March 2, after U.S.–Israeli strikes killed Iran’s supreme leader.

Rubio on Sunday accused Hezbollah of trying to plunge Lebanon “back into chaos” and condemned the group’s “reckless” call to overthrow Lebanon’s “democratically elected government.”

He appeared to be responding to comments from Naim Qassem, Hezbollah’s leader, who said that “the people have the right to go down onto the streets and to bring down the government,” in the context of Israeli strikes and U.S. sanctions on Al‑Qard Al‑Hassan, a financial institution that provides interest‑free loans to Shia Muslims.

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