Trump, in a Truth Social post, said the Deal is scheduled to get signed on Sunday, and "immediately after it is signed, the Hormuz Strait is open to all."
He also said no money would change hands under the agreement, a claim that contrasts with Iranian statements that the release of blocked funds would be an integral part of any deal.
Trump said that “at the appropriate time,” once conditions are calm, the United States would retrieve what he called “the Nuclear Dust” buried deep underground and downblend and destroy it, either in Iran or the United States.
He also warned that if the process fails, Washington has “the ultimate alternative.”
Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said Saturday that an electronic signing ceremony for the Iran-US memorandum of understanding is scheduled for Sunday.
A senior US administration official told Reuters that Washington believes it has reached a “strong” deal with Iran.
Yet Iran’s security and military establishment has not yet signed off on the agreement, in what The Wall Street Journal described as a potentially significant stumbling block.
Mediators told the Journal on Friday that circles centered on the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had yet to approve the preliminary deal to wind down the war.
Iran remains cautious
That uncertainty cuts against the public confidence coming from Washington and Islamabad, and helps explain why Tehran’s public messaging has remained more cautious.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said a memorandum of understanding with the United States could be signed remotely if final negotiations are completed, while insisting the text has not yet been finalized and could still change.
Al-Arabiya reported that Araghchi will travel to Pakistan on Sunday with a delegation for technical discussions related to the emerging agreement.
However, Iran's foreign ministry spokesman had earlier said no delegation would visit Pakistan and no deal is expected to be signed on Sunday.
Differing versions
The two sides are describing the possible agreement in sharply different ways.
Washington has framed it as a performance-based deal that would require Iran to dismantle its nuclear program, destroy or remove highly enriched uranium and accept inspections before receiving economic relief.
A US official told the Wall Street Journal that under the deal, Iran could receive broad sanctions relief if it decommissions nuclear sites, ends its enrichment program and stops funding proxy militia groups, including Hezbollah in Lebanon.
The signing of an initial agreement would open a 60-day period during which Iran would reopen the Strait of Hormuz and the United States would wind back its blockade of Iranian ports and commerce, the Journal reported.
During that period, negotiations would continue on a final nuclear deal and the sanctions relief Tehran would receive under it.
The US official said Iran would receive no money upfront under the deal, despite Tehran’s demand for $24 billion in assets frozen under US sanctions during the 60-day period, along with some upfront economic relief.
Tehran has presented the memorandum as a political and security framework rather than a final agreement. Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said the release of Iran’s blocked funds would be an “integral” part of any agreement, while arguing that Tehran should receive payment for services it provides in the Strait of Hormuz. He said foreign military bases and forces in the region must come to an end.
Baghaei also said the nuclear issue and related matters would not be addressed at this stage, with the focus instead on ending the war and issues related to Lebanon.
A deal still contested in Tehran
That gap has given hardliners inside Iran an opening to attack the draft before it is signed.
A video released by IRGC-affiliated media appears to show a gathering outside the Foreign Ministry’s representative office in Mashhad on Saturday evening where protesters chant, “Death to Araghchi, the dishonorable compromiser and infiltrator.”
The hardliners have been criticizing the foreign ministry and the negotiating team in recent days, accusing them of giving too many concessions to the United States in the emerging deal.
Kayhan, a hardline daily close to Iran’s most uncompromising faction, warned that the Strait of Hormuz must not be reopened through diplomacy with Washington. It said Hormuz had been closed “with power” and should not be opened until US forces leave the region and Washington accepts the supreme leader’s red lines.
Khorasan daily went further, arguing that any deal would only delay what it described as a final confrontation between Iran and the United States, giving both sides time to rebuild offensive and defensive strength before a wider war.
The backlash has also moved through parliament. Ebrahim Rezaei, spokesman for parliament’s National Security Committee, said “excessive generosity” at the negotiating table had changed “the enemy’s calculations” and made Washington think Iran was weak.
Mahmoud Nabavian, another hardline member of the committee, criticized the emerging MoU as open-ended, saying it does not set a timeline for a final agreement and allows for its extension. He said sanctions relief, the withdrawal of US forces and the lifting of the blockade had all been deferred to a final agreement.
Nabavian also said enrichment would remain at its current level, which he described as “zero,” while Tehran would be committed to preparing the ground for reopening the Strait of Hormuz and allowing all commercial vessels to pass without restrictions.
But the hardline front is not entirely unified. The conservative daily Javan criticized those rejecting any negotiation with Washington, arguing that diplomacy can be part of confrontation rather than surrender.
Tehran also appears to be keeping its strategic partners informed. Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said he discussed the latest developments on the draft Islamabad memorandum with the Russian and Chinese ambassadors in Tehran.
Hormuz remains the test
Hormuz remains the clearest test of whether diplomacy is lowering the temperature or merely reorganizing the pressure.
Araghchi has said Iran’s pressure over the strait would remain in place and that Iranian forces would intervene whenever necessary. He said tolls could not be imposed under international law, but described “service fees” as part of the negotiations.
Baghaei echoed that argument, saying Tehran’s measures to manage safe traffic through the Strait of Hormuz were both a step to protect national security and an effort serving the broader interests of the international community.
At the same time, the blockade is already affecting trade. Abbas Soufi, deputy chairman of parliament’s Construction Committee, said imports through Iran’s southern ports have faced challenges because of maritime restrictions.
A senior US administration official said Washington would be involved in de-mining the Strait of Hormuz as it reopens, with G7 countries possibly joining the effort. The official also said Trump will meet leaders from the UAE, Qatar and other Middle Eastern countries at the G7 summit.
