Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei
Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, has approved the agreement signed between Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and US President Donald Trump to end the Middle East conflict, despite expressing personal reservations about the deal.
The agreement opens a 60-day window for broader discussions between Washington and Tehran, including talks on Iran’s nuclear programme and other contentious issues.
In a statement on Thursday, Khamenei said he had approved the deal despite holding a “different view,” stressing that his decision was based on assurances from Iranian officials to “protect the rights of the Iranian nation.”
He added that future “Face-to-face negotiations” with the US would take place but insisted that such engagement does not “mean accepting the enemy’s point of view.”
Following the agreement, the United States lifted its naval blockade of Iranian ports, while shipping activities gradually resumed through the Strait of Hormuz, a key global energy route.
Uncertainty remains over the next phase of the process, with no official confirmation yet on whether planned talks and a signing ceremony in Switzerland will go ahead.
The deal also includes the immediate easing of US oil sanctions on Iran, while both countries continue to negotiate a long-term settlement on Tehran’s nuclear programme.
Trump hailed the agreement as a “Victory,” while critics in both the United States and Iran questioned its durability and warned that tensions could resurface after the 60-day negotiation period.
