The Express understands the United States and Iran have reached an agreement in principle to extend their ceasefire and open formal negotiations over Tehran’s nuclear programme, according to a US official who spoke with the UK media.
However, the proposed framework would still require final approval from Donald Trump, a process officials say could take several days.
If signed off, the deal would include the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and a requirement for Iran to clear mines from the key shipping route within 30 days.
It would also involve limited US sanctions relief to allow Iranian oil exports to continue, in exchange for a written commitment from Tehran not to pursue nuclear weapons development.
US Vice President JD Vance said negotiators had made “good progress” but confirmed the agreement was not yet ready for presidential approval.
“We’re going back and forth on a couple of language points. We’ve made a lot of progress here,” he told reporters.
“Hopefully, we’ll continue to make progress and the president will be in a position where he can endorse the agreement, but obviously that’s still TBD (to be determined).”
While Washington signalled optimism, Iranian messaging remained more guarded.
Tasnim news agency reported that Tehran had not yet formally confirmed finalisation of any text through its Pakistani mediator.
“Iran has not yet informed the Pakistani mediator of the finalisation of the text. If the text is truly finalised, Iran will announce the matter to the Pakistani mediator and to the public,” an Iranian source said.
Under the emerging structure, decisions on Iran’s highly enriched uranium stockpile would be deferred to later negotiations, reports the Telegraph.
The US would also discuss possible sanctions relief alongside the potential release of around $24bn (£18bn) in frozen Iranian assets.
Iranian lawmaker Fedahossein Maleki said talks had advanced significantly, though unresolved issues remained.
“The negotiation process has been accompanied by significant progress. A significant part of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s proposals has been accepted,” he said.
“In quantitative terms, very good progress has been made and in qualitative terms also some progress has been made, although some Iranian considerations still remain that the American side must address.”
The diplomatic movement came just hours after tensions escalated sharply between the two sides.
The US accused Iran of an “egregious ceasefire violation” after a ballistic missile was fired towards American forces in Kuwait.
US Central Command (Centcom) said Iranian forces also launched five drones towards the Strait of Hormuz, all of which were intercepted, while a sixth was prevented from launching from Bandar Abbas.
Iranian state broadcaster IRIB responded by warning that US military bases in the region did not provide security.
“Contrary to the belief of some Arab countries, the presence of US military bases does not bring security to your country. Rather, it creates insecurity for you,” it said.
The remarks echoed comments from Mojtaba Khamenei, son of Iran’s supreme leader, who warned earlier this week there would be “no safe haven” for US forces in the Middle East.
Centcom said: “This egregious ceasefire violation by the Iranian regime occurred hours after Iranian forces launched five one-way attack drones.”
Iran, in turn, accused the US of breaching the ceasefire and warned of a “firm response” from the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps.
Oil prices rose to $93 a barrel following the escalation.
Separate comments from Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei suggested internal disagreement within Iran’s leadership.
He called for national unity while acknowledging divisions, framing them as the result of external pressure.
Khamenei described them as an “enemy strategy to weaken” Iran, without addressing specific policy disputes.
