It was reported that a message from Pakistan, the mediator, saying negotiations with Iran were making progress was behind U.S. President Donald Trump's temporary suspension of "Project Freedom," which supports the movement of ships stranded in the Strait of Hormuz.
CNN reported on the 6th (local time), citing multiple U.S. government officials, that the White House received positive feedback from Pakistan the day before that "Iran is moving toward a compromise with the United States." It said that signal directly prompted Trump to decide the same day to suspend Project Freedom.
Trump said on the social media platform Truth Social the previous day that "great progress has been made toward a complete and final agreement with the Iranian delegation," adding, "We will temporarily suspend Project Freedom to see if we can reach a final settlement and sign it."
However, CNN said caution still prevails within the administration. Given that talks have fallen apart at the last minute in the past, officials judge there are still many variables before a final agreement this time as well.
According to CNN and Axios, the United States and Iran are discussing signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to end the war. The 14-point document reportedly includes Iran's temporary halt to uranium enrichment, a U.S. easing of sanctions on Iran, Iran's lifting of its blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, and a U.S. easing of its maritime blockade on Iran. The two sides are said to be considering first using the MOU to set the basic framework for talks, then holding about 30 days of additional negotiations to produce a final agreement.
In a PBS interview that day, Trump also said there is a very high chance of reaching a deal and that it could be concluded before next week's visit to China. He added that the agreement would include the transfer of Iran's stockpile of highly enriched uranium to the United States, the shutdown of Iran's underground nuclear facilities, and sanctions relief. Even so, Trump left room regarding the outcome of the negotiations, saying he had felt that way before as well.