Iran reports no progress in restoring June interim deal with US
A senior Iranian source says mediation has made no progress on reviving the June interim agreement with the US, while the Strait of Hormuz remains blocked.
- A senior Iranian source reports that there has been "absolutely no progress" in discussions with the U.S. to revive the collapsed June interim agreement.
- The deadlock stems from mutual accusations of non-compliance; the U.S. claims Iran failed to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, while Iran says the U.S. did not lift port blockades or release frozen assets.
- The Iranian source denied reports of an extension to the deal's 60-day timeline, arguing the U.S. violated the agreement within 48 hours, leaving nothing to extend.
Iran and the United States have made no progress towards reviving their June interim agreement or setting a timetable for carrying out its commitments, a senior Iranian source has told Reuters, leaving efforts to secure a lasting end to the Gulf war at an impasse.
The assessment came as US President Donald Trump renewed his criticism of Iran’s leadership, further dimming prospects for a resolution after fresh attacks on shipping in the region on Tuesday.
The agreement reached in June called for an “immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts”, but quickly fell apart. Trump declared the deal “over” on July 7, while Iran’s foreign ministry announced a week later that it had been “suspended”.
Washington accuses Tehran of failing to honour a commitment under the agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a vital international shipping route. Iran, in turn, maintains that the US has failed to fulfil its own obligations, including lifting the blockade of Iranian ports and releasing frozen Iranian assets.
“One of the issues that is being discussed via mediators is the US returning to the interim agreement and defining a time frame for implementing the commitments. There has been absolutely no progress on this issue,” the Iranian source told Reuters.
Trump declared on Wednesday that the US had “total control” over the Strait of Hormuz.
However, the Persian Gulf Strait Authority, the body established by Iran to manage the waterway, maintained that the strait remained blocked and would not reopen until Tehran’s conditions were accepted.
“Iran is all talk and no action, the Bully of the Middle East No Longer,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
Throughout the conflict, Trump has alternated between threatening further escalation and suggesting that a peace agreement could be close.
No discussion of extension
Thousands of people have been killed since the US and Israel launched attacks on Iran on February 28, with most of the deaths occurring in Iran and Lebanon.
Iran has retaliated against US assets and infrastructure in several countries, including Oman, Jordan, Kuwait, Israel, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.
Under the June interim ceasefire agreement, Iran and the US were given 60 days to reach a final settlement, with the period extendable by mutual consent. The intended final agreement was to place limits on Tehran’s nuclear programme in exchange for the lifting of US sanctions.
The Iranian source rejected a report by Turkey’s Anadolu news agency on Wednesday, which cited Pakistani government sources as saying an extension of the 60-day period had been agreed.
“There is no talk of an extension because, from Iran’s perspective, there is no period that began and therefore nothing to extend. The United States violated the interim agreement 48 hours after it was reached and withdrew from it a few days later,” the source told Reuters.
Shipping attacks add to tensions
The Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway separating Iran and Oman and providing access to the Gulf, handled about one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas flows before the war.
Brent crude futures have risen sharply since the conflict began in February, reaching a peak of US$126 a barrel — about 75% above pre-war levels. Trading has remained volatile amid concerns over disruptions to Gulf energy supplies and changing signals over the prospects for peace.
Two separate incidents on Tuesday added to tensions over regional shipping. A suspected Houthi attack on a small cargo vessel in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait killed four crew members.
In a separate incident, a US Navy MH-60 helicopter fired two Hellfire missiles to disable the steering gear of a Panama-flagged cargo ship, according to the US military.
Oil prices initially rose on Wednesday before stabilising during volatile trading after forecasters lowered their projections for global oil demand in 2026.
Brent crude futures were trading at around US$88 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude stood at about US$83 a barrel.
Source: Reuters
