The United States and Iran have agreed to suspend recent hostilities in the Gulf and restart negotiations over the Strait of Hormuz, according to a US official, raising hopes of preserving a fragile interim peace agreement after several days of escalating military exchanges.
The recent clashes highlighted the vulnerability of the Pakistan-brokered accord aimed at ending a conflict that has claimed thousands of lives and disrupted global oil shipments through the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz.
“Technical talks are slated to continue on all areas of the memorandum of understanding (MoU). Both sides will stand down for now and vessels can move freely,” the official said, referring to the 14-point agreement that was signed on June 18 under which the strait would be reopened for traffic.
Iran has not immediately responded to the US announcement.
According to Axios, which first reported the development citing a senior US official, negotiations are expected to resume in Qatar on Tuesday.
The renewed diplomatic efforts come after several days of strikes and retaliatory attacks that began when an Iranian projectile struck a cargo vessel in the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday. Both Washington and Tehran have since accused each other of violating the interim ceasefire reached on June 17.
Earlier on Sunday, Iran launched missiles and drones targeting US military installations in Kuwait and Bahrain after US President Donald Trump warned that the Islamic Republic would cease to exist if it failed to uphold the agreement.
Meanwhile, Israel carried out another military strike in southern Lebanon, saying it had destroyed underground Hezbollah infrastructure in a village. The attack followed a separate strike on Saturday, despite a ceasefire agreement reached with Lebanon on Friday.
Iran has maintained that lasting peace in Lebanon is essential for the broader regional agreement to remain in place.
The US military also confirmed carrying out fresh strikes on Iran hours after a tanker was hit in the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most critical energy shipping routes, much of which Tehran has effectively closed during the conflict.
“There may come a point when we are no longer able to be reasonable, and will be forced to militarily complete the job that we very successfully started,” Trump said on social media before the Axios report.
“If that happens, the Islamic Republic of Iran will no longer exist!” he added.
The 14-point interim peace agreement was intended to end fighting that began on February 28 between the US, Israel and Iran, reopen the Strait of Hormuz, and create space for negotiations on issues including Iran’s nuclear programme.
One round of mediated talks between US Vice President JD Vance and Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf was held in Switzerland last week, during which Washington eased sanctions on Tehran. However, hostilities resumed shortly afterwards.
About an hour after Trump’s warning, Kuwait reported that its air defence systems were intercepting incoming missiles and drones, while Bahrain activated emergency sirens.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said its naval and air forces had launched missile and drone operations against US military facilities in Kuwait and Bahrain.
The Guards said US strikes had violated the ceasefire and “will result in the complete halt of all diplomatic processes”, state-run Press TV said. The IRGC navy command said American bases in the region “will experience hell in the coming days”.
A US official confirmed that Iranian forces had targeted American facilities but said there were no reported US casualties or significant damage, adding that the situation remained fluid.
Later, Bahrain reported a second wave of alarms after an Iranian attack damaged a residential building in Muharraq province. No casualties were reported, and Bahrain called on the UN Security Council to hold an emergency meeting to hold Iran accountable.
Kuwaiti authorities said two ballistic missiles were intercepted without causing casualties or damage.
Separately, Qatar confirmed that one of its citizens had died after suffering shrapnel injuries aboard a vessel that went missing on Saturday. Another individual was injured in the same incident, which the Qatari interior ministry attributed to “military operations in the area” without identifying those responsible.
