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⚡️ In the Middle East recap for June 16, readers will see that Vice President JD Vance has been pushing out the narrative of the US-Iran deal in various TV appearances, which will mainly focus on the fact that Iran doesn’t have a nuclear weapon, while giving Iran rewards in return through implemented phases, as Iran still continue to keep the Strait of Hormuz closed to traffic, despite the US lifting the Naval blockade, and other news affecting the Middle East.
Official Responses About The Deal:
⚡️ President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, said she congratulated President Trump in Évian on his agreement with Iran, saying they both believed it should bring a definitive end to Iran’s nuclear program, reopen the Strait, and lower oil prices.
⚡️ Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney claimed to have been one of the few people who had seen the MoU between the US and Iran: “I’ve seen it,” he said: “We have our sources – it is a reasonable agreement, which is in effect a cessation of hostilities.”
🔹 Asked by CNN’s Collins whether Canada planned to help with opening the Strait of Hormuz, Carney said that Canada would help as they could: “Importantly, we can do things on the financial side because remember, there are assets that are being unfrozen…” he said.
⚡️ German Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced at the G7 summit that his country was ready to participate in efforts to maintain stability in the Middle East following the interim agreement between the US and Iran, adding that Germany had already sent mine-clearing vessels to the area as part of preparations to maintain freedom of navigation and maritime security.
⚡️ Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said the next phase of the negotiations will be more difficult than the first, AFP reported, noting Wang told Pakistan’s Ishaq Dar the current consensus is ‘far from the final destination – it is a new starting point.’
🔹 Wang called for the UN Security Council to play a greater role in supporting the negotiations, adding that China was prepared to cooperate with Pakistan in advancing peace initiatives in the Middle East and Gulf region.
⚡️ Turkish Foreign Minister Kahan Fidan said that President Trump didn’t listen to israel’s objections regarding Iran, while Iran responded positively to that will, and they reached an outcome as a result: “Our hope is that these technical negotiations will end as soon as possible and there will be a form of peace in our region,” he said.
⚡️ Qatar’s Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Majed al-Ansari told a regular press briefing on Tuesday that Qatar viewed the deal as a potential step towards improving security in the region.
🔹 However, Qatar were: “Cautiously optimistic that the signing of the memorandum of will lead to the next phase of regional security through the talks that will take place on the nuclear program and on other issues,” Ansari said.
🔹 Ansari also confirmed that officials from both Pakistan and Qatar will attend the official signing ceremony on Friday.
🔹 Without discussing the details of the agreement, the spokesman stressed the importance of renewed regional engagement once it is signed, arguing that rebuilding trust with Iran will require dialogue.
🔹 Ansari concluded: “I can’t say that we are returning to business as usual in our region with our neighbours… there is a lot of need for dialogue and for agreement over how to guarantee the security of the region.”
Trump Speaks About The Deal Twice:
⚡️ President Trump sat alongside the Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, praising the Emir as a ‘fantastic man, respected all over the world,’ adding that the Prime Minister likewise, but ‘we have to go with the Emir first,’ he said, adding: “You fought, and you helped us with great bravery – you will always be my friend.”
🔹 Trump said that the US have done the deal with Iran: “It should be successful,” he said, saying it goes to a second stage which he thought would be easier, and noted: “We are not investing any money in Iran, by the way,” noting a rumour was circulating on Monday which was ‘ridiculous.’
🔹 According to Trump, the US have the right to ‘go in someday and do something or somebody wants to do something, but we are not investing any money,’ adding: “We have no obligation to invest money in Iran.
🔹 Trump claimed the regime change was not on the US agenda during the war, saying: “I never chared about regime change, but i guess you have regime change in Iran,” adding that he didn’t believe in regime change: “I’ve watched regime changes for years, and they never work,” he said: “It just has to happen.”
🔹 “I was very responsible for Syria, and the man that’s running Syria now is a person that I put there, along with President Erdogan and some others – he’s not a boy scout, but he’s done an amazing job of pulling it together,” Trump said.
🔹 Trump said Israel has been fighting Hezbollah for too long and too many people are being killed: “You don’t have to knock down an apartment or house every time you’re looking for somebody, because there are a lot of people in those apartment houses, and they’re not all Hezbollah, that I can tell you,” adding: “I suggested to Israel to let Syria to take care of Hezbollah because, to be honest with you, I think they’d do a better job.”
🔹 According to Trump, Al-Sharaa has been a very good choice: “He’s protected everything that I’ve asked for,” Trump said: “If Israel can’t do the job without killing everyone else, he’ll do the job – Syria will do the job.”
🔹 However, Trump claimed he wasn’t frustrated with Prime Minister Netanyahu and that they still had a great friendship: “Bibi ends up doing a very – I saw that attack on Dahieh, I saw where that bomb went – did you see what happened? That was a vicious retaliation, that was too much to do.”
🔹 Trump said in his deal on Iran, if Iran get a nuclear weapon, they get blown up: “In Obama’s deal, they were allowed to have a nuclear weapon,” he claimed: “Netanyahu came to Washington and begged – he begged Obama not to make the deal with Iran, but Obama was on the side of Iran, not Israel, and he made the deal.”
🔹 Even Turkey was even hit by Iran once during the war, Trump claimed, saying he never understood it: “Nobody is going to understand it, that’s the problem, they are totally irrational people, but now those people are gone,” adding: “I think Iran has rational leadership now.”
🔹 Trump said if it weren’t for the United States of America, Israel would not exist now, it would have been blown off the face of the Earth: “Every smart person in Israel knows that,” he claimed.
🔹 When a reporter asked what would happen if the Iranian regime continued to kill its own people, and whether that could affect the deal, Trump replied: “We talked to them about it – the majority of that took place during the first and second regimes, much more so than now.”
⚡️ President Trump sat alongside UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan (MbZ), saying: “His highness is a warrior, he was in there fighting, and he does what has to be done, and he’s known for it – he’s a courageous man.”
🔹 Trump said: “He’s got a great country, it’s a fantastic country, and they’ve been with the United States for a long time, but I would say much more so since I came on board.”
🔹 He said: “I just want to say that the relationship has been outstanding – he’s a man of great respect, everybody respects him, and they respect your country,” adding: “We just signed a deal with Iran, and this country was a very powerful ally – and good things are happening.”
🔹 MbZ replied: “It is my pleasure, Mr President, to be with you here, and I want to say that we are grateful to have you here and as a President of the United States,” expressing a special thanks for support during the Six-Week War: “It means a lot to us.”
🔹 Trump said: “When you’re that rich, you can speak that lowly- I was wondering, can anybody hear that?” Trump said about MbZ: “When you’re so rich, you have such confidence that you don’t have to do any strain to the voice – he’s great.”
🔹 President Trump said the relations with Iran had now been normalised, the Strait of Hormuz would be open and toll-free – “permanently toll-free,” he stressed, adding that the agreement is about one thing: “Iran will never have a nuclear weapon – never, ever, ever!” adding: “The rest of it is irrelevant, frankly.”
🔹 When asked about Lindsey Graham being sceptical, Trump said: “I will have to talk to him, and he will be in big trouble,” adding that Lindsey is good, he is fine, he is not sceptical.
🔹 Trump was also asked whether he’d send any agreement to Congress for approval, following a suggestion from Senator Graham, and he replied he’d never thought of it but would: “I wouldn’t mind, I mean, you know, the Democrats – we call them ‘Dumocrats’ because they’re dumb people.”
🔹 President Trump added that what he’d like to do is send it to Congress saying “you shouldn’t approve it,” and it would get approved, adding that “whatever I say, they want to do the opposite – it’s not working too well for them, by the way.”
🔹 Asked about Iran’s nuclear dust, Trump said: “We are in no rush, but we will get it, and destroy it,” and added he may hold a press conference to read the memorandum of understanding out loud ‘so the press covers it accurately.’
Alleged deals released by the media:
⚡️ Al-Arabia claimed to have part of the MoU, claiming it contained points including an end to the war on all fronts, including Lebanon, the US to lift its naval blockade of Iranian ports, and Iran to lift its blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
🔹 The report suggests the US are to withdraw all additional forces from the region within 30 days of signing the agreement, while the US and the Gulf countries will commit to a $300 billion Iran reconstruction program.
🔹 If a final deal is reached, Washington will lift all current IAEA sanctions on Tehran, lift all sanctions on Iran’s oil exports, and unfreeze all assets, while the nuclear issue will also be resolved in the final deal, but until then Iran’s status quo remains in place (allowed low-level civilian enrichment processes).
⚡️ The Wall Street Journal spoke to people familiar with the agreement, stating that the US would allow Iran to immediately begin selling oil and fuel once the MoU is signed this week, noting that the sanctions waiver covers not only oil sales, but also related services including banking, transportation, and insurance to facilitate those sales.
⚡️ Channel 12 and Axios reporter Barak Ravid claimed to have obtained key points of the MoU between the US and Iran, which allegedly included that Iran, the US and other allies would cease all hostilities, including Lebanon.
🔹 On the nuclear issue, Iran reiterated its commitment not to develop or acquire nuclear weapons, pledge to resolve issues of disposal of enriched uranium stockpile jointly with the US, along with discussions to on enrichment and Iran’s nuclear needs, and Iran will maintain status quo on its nuclear program during negotiations.
🔹 In the Strait of Hormuz, the US will lift the naval blockade, not impose new sanctions, and will not increase forces in the region during negotiations, while Iran will make the necessary arrangements to ensure safe passage of commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz, free of charge, for 60 days.
🔹 Meanwhile, the US pledged to make frozen Iranian assets available for use with implementation of the MoU, and if a final agreement is reached, the US will withdraw its forces within 30 days while lifting all sanctions on Iran.
🔹 Any final agreement will include a plan to establish a $300 billion fund for Iran’s reconstruction, while the US are to give Iran temporary sanctions relief to sell oil as a gesture of goodwill during negotiations.
🔹 Negotiations will be held between Iran and Oman with the participation of Gulf policy to define ‘arrangements regarding shipping and maritime services,” the report concluded.
⚡️ Reuters claimed the US-Iran framework agreement included plans for a $300 billion private investment fund aimed at accelerating economic investment in Iran, with more than half of the financing already committed.
🔹 The proposed ‘Reconstruction and Development Fund’ would be backed by private companies from the United States, Gulf States, Asia, South America, and Africa, covering sectors such as energy, logistics, manufacturing, transportation, and infrastructure.
🔹 Iran had initially sought $400 billion in compensation for war-related damages from the US, but after Washington rejected direct payments, the investment fund emerged as an alternative mechanism to support the rebuilding of damaged facilities, including industrial sites, refineries, airports, and other critical infrastructure.
⚡️ Bloomberg became the third publication on Tuesday who claimed to have details of the Memorandum of Understanding, following previous claims by Axios and al Arabiya.
🔹 According to Bloomberg, Tehran, Washington, and their allies announce an immediate and final end to the war on all fronts, while pledging not to launch any hostile action and refrain from threats, and pledging to reach an agreement within a maximum period of 60 days, extendable depending on progress.
🔹 Meanwhile, the US will lift the naval blockade on Iran immediately upon signing the MoU, pledges to withdraw its forces from the region within 30 days from the date of the final agreement, while Iran works to resume ship movement within 30 days, taking into account its need to remove obstacles.
🔹 Bloomberg claimed that Washington pledged to cooperate with regional partners in rehabilitating and economically developing Iran, while also committing to ending sanctions on Iran according to a timeline agreed upon as part of the agreement.
🔹 Iran reiterated it would never produce or acquire nuclear weapons, while Tehran and Washington also agreed to discuss the fate of enriched materials and nuclear issues in a final agreement.
🔹 Tehran and Washington agreed to maintain the status quo until a final agreement is reached, and Iran maintained its current nuclear program without Washington imposing sanctions or strengthening its forces.
🔹 Washington pledged to exempt Iranian oil and related banking services from sanctions, while pledging to release frozen Iranian funds and assets, after receiving guarantees of implementation of a number of agreements, the two countries begin final negotiations.
🔹 The final agreement between Washington and Tehran will be adopted in a binding resolution by the UN National Security Council.
Media Speculation:
⚡️ WSJ: The US-Iran memorandum of understanding allows Iran to immediately resume oil sales and could waive banking and transport sanctions to facilitate related transactions.
🔹 According to the report, the agreement would provide broader sanctions relief than previously disclosed, potentially allowing Iranian oil exports to expand while enabling the repatriation of oil revenues currently restricted by US secondary sanctions.
🔹 If implemented as reported, the measures would mark a significant easing of economic pressure on Tehran before negotiations on a final agreement have concluded.
⚡️ Israel have requested access to the memorandum of understanding signed between the US and Israel, reported Channel 12, noting that Israeli officials sought to review the contents of the agreement following its signing, but that Washington rejected the request.
⚡️ Israeli intelligence assessments conveyed to officials state that Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei doesn’t want to reach a final agreement, and that the approval of the framework agreement stems from a desire to free the Strait of Hormuz, as well as receive an economic boost for the regime, but not to create agreements on the nuclear issue, N12 reported.
⚡️ CNN reported that the one-and-a-half page MoU text was intentionally broad and designed to create conditions for further negotiations, while allowing both sides flexibility in presenting the deal domestically.
🔹 US officials claimed key understandings reached through backchannel discussions were not fully reflected in the document.
🔹 Officials added that the framework outlined the prospects of sanctions relief, a future nuclear agreement and access to Iranian funds, while details regarding Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile, asset releases and implementation mechanisms are expected to be addressed during upcoming technical negotiations.
Vance Sells The Agreement:
⚡️ Vice President JD Vance spoke about the Iran deal to Fox News again on Tuesday, saying that Tehran faced a choice between changing its behaviour and pursuing confrontation, arguing that Washington wins ‘either way.’
🔹 “But here’s the option for Iran,” Vance said: “If you learn the right lessons from this, and if you change theway that you react and respond to the United States, option one is that we’re going to change the way that we respond to you, we’re going to have a better relationship with you,” he added.
🔹 However, should Iran choose option two, which is to continue to try and pursue a nuclear weapon: “Then nothing that we, we don’t commit to doing anything as part of this deal – so the United States wins either way.”
🔹 “What the president is trying to do is actually extend the hand of peace and say, if the Iranian people want greater prosperity, then their leadership has to step up and change their behaviour,” adding that if they do, then great but: “IF they don’t, the United States has already gotten a lot from what we need.”
⚡️ Marketing the Iranian deal to The SiriusXM program, JD Vance said that the agreement is a regional peace deal which is going to include the Gulf, Israel, and Lebanon, but warned: “If Iran is funding Hezbollah, we’re not going to allow a bunch of unfrozen assets to flow to the Iranians.”
🔹 Vance said: “We were never going to get the quagmire that a lot of people were warning about because Donald Trump is just not George W Bush.”
🔹 JD Vance continued: “We have a constituency right now that is saying that we’re going to send boots on the ground,” claiming the Republicans want President Trump to send thousands of troops into Iran: “We need people pushing back from inside the tent,” he said.
🔹 According to Vance: “The reason why neocons are so much more effective in politics than the people on the other side in our coalition is because they play the game, they get disappointed, they make their criticisms, they go back and they live to fight another day.”
🔹 Megan Kelly said some had tried to push back on Iran, and then were told “Those who speak ill of Mark Levin are not MAGA,” to which Vance responded by saying that the President pushed back at a criticism he thought was unfair.
🔹 Vance said: “He engages, and he’s going to criticise when he agrees or disagrees with you – he’s going to say nice things about you when he agrees with you, but that’s what I actually love about the president is he’s not like viewing these debates from the outside, he’s participating in them himself.”
🔹 JD Vance said the coalition that made Donald Trump the President of the United States and JD Vance as the Vice President – people have to remember this – included Megan Kelly, Tucker Carlson and Joe Rogan, as well as Mark Levin: “It was also a lot of people like John Podhoretz who want a more aggressive foreign policy,” he added.
🔹 “I’m never going to say that John Podhoretz is not welcome in the Republican Party, he is, but just as he’s disappointed right now, sometimes other people are going to be disappointed at other times,” adding: “You can’t just quit politics because the leader of 340 million people makes a decision you disagree with.”
🔹 Speaking of future investments, Vance said to take the UAE, one of the best allies the USA have had in the region, as an example of a country who wanted to invest in a nuclear power plant in Iran: “They really can’t do that without us lifting some of the sanctions that exist in the global financial system to make that possible.”
🔹 Vance said: “Now, are the Emiratis going to invest in Iran, or is America going to let the Emiratis invest in Iran unless the Iranians change their behaviour? No,” adding that all the people say: “Well, you know, you’re giving Iran money,” stating that wasn’t correct, but that the US would allow other countries to invest in rebuilding Iran and creating prosperity for their people.
🔹 According to Vance, someone said, (possibly Lindsey Graham), that the deal was like doing the Marshall Plan when the Nazis were still in control, but that was wrong in a few different ways: “Number one, the Marshall Plan was a lot of American taxpayer money, and this is not American taxpayer money,” he said.
🔹 “Number two, we’re saying you only get the benefits of the bargain if you change behaviour,” stating that if that happened, there’d be a transformed Middle East: “That’s a great legacy for the President, but more importantly, it’s a great one for the American people.”
🔹 Vance said some people were rallying against the deal with Iran, claiming they’re proposing an endless conflict: “They want this to go on until every bomb has been dropped or until every Iranian is dead,” he said, adding: “That is not what Trump wants.”
🔹 “President Trump never said that his goal was to install Reza Pahlavi to become the new leader of Iran,” Vance claimed: “What he said is, if the Iranian people wanted to rise up, then great, that’s their business, that’s between them and their government,” adding: “What we want is a cessation of their nuclear program.”
⚡️ Vice President JD Vance found himself on Fox News for the third time this week, addressing questions from Perino on The Five program, such as why not delay the “photo op” next to the Iranians until the 60-day period for Iran to comply was over, instead of rewarding them before that.
🔹 JD Vance replied to that question that President Trump doesn’t see a photo opportunity as rewarding the Iranians, before claiming that if Donald Trump had been elected the Supreme Leader of Iran following the war, the Democrats would still say the United States had lost.
🔹 “You’ve got Iranian propagandists out there saying, ‘Well, they get all these things,’ and they leave out the fact that they only get those things if they fundamentally transform themselves as a country,” Vance said, adding: “The United States wins either way.”
Hormuz News:
⚡️ Despite the blockade being lifted by the US Navy, Iran’s blockade is still continuing until the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding, according to IRIB News, and will likely be reopened by Iran this Friday.
⚡️ The US military reportedly oversaw secret ship-to-ship transfers near the Strait of Hormuz to keep Gulf energy exports flowing, using a shuttling technique that had long-been employed by the Iranians to evade sanctions.
🔹 According to Reuters, the operation began in early May, involved at least 92 ships, and used transfer sites off Fujairah in the UAE and Sohar in Oman.
⚡️ Movements of Iranian crude oil were spotted by Tanker Trackers on Monday following the announcement of the removal of the US blockade, noted to be the first crude exports in two months.
🔹 Satellite imagery corroborated by Tanker Trackers on Tuesday confirmed at least two National Iranian Tanker Company VLCC supertankers named Diona and Hero2 have exited the US Navy blockade carrying a combined total of 2.8 million barrels of crude oil.
🔹 Meanwhile, the NITC’s Stream is approaching the blockade line from the Economic Exclusion Zone of Pakistan, where it had spent the past 7 weeks waiting to enter Iran.
⚡️ Iran launched multiple drones towards commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz that were attempting to transit without IRGC Navy permission, since the agreement with the United States was announced on Sunday, as US Forces reportedly shot down the drones before they could threaten military or commercial vessels in the area, NBC reported.
⚡️ POLITICO claimed the Trump administration were exploring measures to fully restore tanker traffic through the Strait ofHormuz, including a proposal that would allow shipowners to pay for expedited passage accompanied by US Naval escorts.
🔹 President Trump and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles had directed officials to find ways to encourage shipping companies and insurers to resume operations through the waterway as negotiations continue.
🔹 One proposal being discussed would create a fee-based ‘VIP pass’ system offering priority transit and possibly military protection, while another idea being considered is using the Defence Production Act to require US-based insurers to provide coverage for vessels operating in the area.
⚡️ IEA chief Fatih Birol demanded immediate and unconditional reopening of Strait of Hormuz to stop global energy shock of soaring worldwide energy prices, labelling the full opening of the strategic waterway as the single most important solution to the ongoing crisis.
News from Iran:
⚡️ Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr Al Busaidi held a call in which they discussed the importance of maintaining security in the Strait of Hormuz and supporting diplomatic efforts, following the recent developments between Tehran and Washington.
🔹 The two sides also discussed expanding bilateral cooperation based on their long-standing neighbourly, historical, and cultural ties, reaffirming their commitment to international law to ensure the safe and free passage of vessels through the Strait of Hormuz.
⚡️ Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters said that Israel had violated the ceasefire in southern Lebanon 84 times in two days, following President Trump’s announcement of the end of the war, and continued to commit crimes and killings of the ‘oppressed people of Lebanon.’
🔹 The statement warned: “If the ‘child-killing army’ of the ‘Zionist regime’ does not stop its mischief in southern Lebanon, it should expect a hard response from the powerful armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran.”
⚡️ Hezbollah Secretary-General Sheikh Naim Qassem sent a message to Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, expressing thanks and gratitude for Iran’s support to the Lebanese people.
🔹 “We express our profound gratitude for the strong positions taken in support of Lebanon and its resistance, which transformed the hope of ending Israeli and American aggression into reality,” the statement said.
🔹 The statement continued: “We reaffirm that Iran has always supported our choices and our people without seeking anything in return, and declare that Iran is an icon of dignity and honour.”
🔹 Qassem also expressed thanks, in the name of Hezbollah, its resistance and the Lebanese people who support it, to Mojtaba Khamenei, President Pezeshkian, the IRGC and all Iranian institutions and people.
🔹 “We also pay special tribute to the Iranian people for what we describe as their willingness to sacrifice in support of the resistance and its people,” the statement concluded.
⚡️ Three sources told CNN that intelligence agencies in the United States had assessed Iran could now effectively shut down the Strait of Hormuz at will – a powerful new capability acquired as a direct result of the war.
🔹 One source familiar with the assessments told CNN: “We have now handed Iran de-facto control over the Strait – a weapon more powerful than any nuke.”
🔹 Iran has also learned it can leverage targeted strikes against Gulf energy infrastructure and potentially deploy Houthi forces to close the Bab al-Mandeb Strait as an ‘economic nuclear weapon’ if negotiations collapsed.
⚡️ Reza Pahlavi wrote on X that dealing with the regime would fail and everyone would face the consequences, noting the ‘regime’s 47-year war against the Iranian people continues.’
🔹 Pahlavi said: “Just as it has never made peace with its own citizens, it will never truly make peace with the world,” stating the international community should back the people of Iran’s fight for freedom: “Put them centre in any negotiations and in their Iran policy,” he said.
🔹 The exiled-Shah added: “But let me be clear – with or without international support – the regime will fall,” stating that the “people of Iran will liberate themselves from tyranny.”
⚡️ Although multiple-entry visas had been issued to most of the Iranian national team players to travel to the United States, Mehdi Torabi’s visa was only valid for a single entry, which meant after the national team’s trip to Los Angeles to play against New Zealand and the conclusion of that match, the visa had expired, IRIB reported, adding that the Iranian Football Federation is already taking steps to obtain a new visa for Torabi so he can play in upcoming matches.
⚡️ Footballers of the Iranian national team are athletes focused on football rather than being political actors, Mehdi Taremi said in a press conference following the draw with New Zealand, saying the team’s goal is to stand with and represent all Iranians, both inside and outside the country, through sport, with an emphasis on unity rather than political divisions.
🔹 Taremi added that the players are ‘tired’ of being drawn into discussions about political issues, preferring to focus on their performances on the pitch, stating that the team are fully concentrated on giving their best in the upcoming matches, aiming to make a strong showing in what he described as Iran’s seventh World Cup appearance, and to push for qualification to the knockout stages.
⚡️ Parliament Speaker Mohammad Ghaber Ghalibaf held a call with counterpart Nabih Berri from Lebanon, discussing recent regional developments, while emphasising the necessity of implementing the commitments arising from the MoU between Tehran and Washington, and the responsibility of international actors in stopping the war and preserving Lebanon’s sovereignty.
⚡️ Deputy Speaker of Lebanon’s Parliament, Elias Bou Saab, said in an exclusive interview with Al Mayadeen on Tuesday that one ‘should acknowledge that Iran has played a significant role in securing the ceasefire and succeeding in ensuring that Lebanon was included as a primary clause in the MoU with the United States.”
🔹 Bou Saab revealed that a committee, made up of some Arab countries and the United States, possibly Iran too, may be established to help manage regional affairs, including Lebanon, adding: “There are direct communications between Iran, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE aimed at solving the crisis while safeguarding the sovereignty and interest of all parties.”
🔹 According to Bou Saab, one ‘cannot help but honour every martyr, every wounded, and every person who sacrificed his life in defence of Lebanon, emphasising that Resistance fighters in southern Lebanon are ‘confronting Israeli aggression’ and affirmed there should be no disagreement over their role in defending the country.
🔹 While acknowledging political debates over Lebanon’s involvement in the support front, Bou Saab insisted that today’s reality is different, urging that the Resistance fighters’ ‘morale must not be undermined, nor should their dignity or the dignity of their families.”
⚡️ Iran are looking to connect its national electricity grid with Qatar as part of broader efforts to expand original cooperation in the Gulf, according to Iranian Energy Minister Abbas Aliabadi.
🔹 “The connection of Iranian power grids with Qatar will begin in the near future,” Aliabadi was quoted by Tasnim News Agency, adding that Iran is also examining the potential cooperation with other regional countries in the energy sector, indicating a wider push toward energy connectivity beyond bilateral arrangements.
🔹 According to the report, the planned grid connection followed a memorandum of understanding signed in February 2022 between Iran and Qatar, which laid the groundwork for joint cooperation in electricity exchange, and under the agreement, both sides committed to facilitating the transfer of up to 1,000 megawatts of electricity, according to reports cited by Tasnim.
🔹 The deal positioned Qatar as the first Gulf state expected to establish a direct electricity connection with Iran, marking a significant development in regional energy infrastructure planning.
⚡️ Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht-Ravanchi announced the provision within the agreement to address ceasefire violations by Israel, classing them as a breach of the MoU, noting that Washington had accepted the terms to agree a comprehensive end to regional hostilities.
News from the USA:
⚡️ President Trump is considering removing a number of senior administration officials who opposed the Iran deal, which allegedly includes Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and CIA Director John Ratcliffe, according to Israel Hayom, adding that ‘the one who gets immunity in the meantime is Marco Rubio,’ noting that the Secretary of State was very careful not to criticise the deal.
⚡️ Washington are making preparations to withdraw around 20% of the refuelling aircraft currently stationed at Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport following the US-Iran MoU, Channel 12 reported.
🔹 According to the broadcast, 72 US military refuelling aircraft currently occupy significant space at Ben Gurion, causing congestion and threatening mass flight cancellations affecting more than 2 million passengers this summer.
🔹 Israeli Transportation Minister Miri Regev demanded immediate removal, warning Netanyahu that if half the planes are not gone by Tuesday, more than 2 million citizens would face cancelled flights including Rosh Hashanah travel to Uman.
🔹 Withdrawn aircraft could be relocated to Europe and kept on standby to redeploy if war resumes, but Channel 12 didn’t confirm whether planes would leave Israel entirely, or move to Israeli Air Force bases.
🔹 Israel’s Civil Aviation authority head warned in May that turning Ben Gurion into a US military base with limited commercial operations threatened Israeli airlines’ economic stability and the return of foreign carriers.
⚡️ Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton criticised and mocked President Trump, saying that when Trump launched the war against Iran, and then out of the White House, you hear ‘nobody told me about the Strait of Hormuz.’
🔹 “Where is the Strait of Hormuz?” Clinton asked, saying that you can’t make it up: “It’s like some movie you walk out of because it’s so outlandish.”
🔹 Clinton said Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has repeatedly relied on wars to rally support and contain growing opposition, arguing that a potential Iran deal could mark a turning point that weakened his grip on power and opened the door to his departure in upcoming elections.
⚡️ President Trump put forward a proposal to Israeli and Lebanese representatives around six weeks ago, under which Syria would take responsibility for disarming Hezbollah, reported Kan News.
🔹 However, the proposal was rejected by both sides, with Israel expressing doubts that Ahmed al-Sharaa could dismantle Hezbollah, while Lebanon opposed foreign involvement in its internal affairs.
🔹 Israeli officials also criticised Trump’s approach to Hezbollah, arguing that the emerging agreement strengthened the group and granted it greater legitimacy, which came alongside broader concerns over Trump’s handling of the Iran agreement.
🔹 President Trump again stated today that talks with Hezbollah are necessary in the future, marking another public call by the US President for engagement with the group.
⚡️ Senate Majority Leader John Thune was asked whether he’d been befriend by the Trump administration about what’s in the deal with Iran, to which he replied he hadn’t yet, although its been requested: “We will at some point hear from the administration,” he said.
⚡️ President Trump’s first-term Vice President, Mike Pence, told The Hill program he had very real concerns, at least what was rumbling out of the public debate, in relation to the MoU.
🔹 “Now, I spent a lot of time in the Situation Room over the years – I know the difference between what actually has been settled, and what gets talked about in the media, so I don’t want to prejudge… but I just don’t trust the Iranians,” Pence said.
🔹 Pence said: “In my judgement, you can’t trust the Iranians, and unless there is a firm framework for the verifiable dismantling of their nuclear weapons program, dismantling of the ballistic missile program, and the Strait is opened up – unless all those things happen, it’s my view that we would be better off allowing the Armed Forces of the United States to finish the job on our terms.”
⚡️ Warmonger Senator Lindsey Graham said that now an agreement was in place, Saudi Arabia and Israel owed President Trump a lot: “It would be good for the region and the world for these two countries to make peace and do business together,” he said.
🔹 Graham said he was confident that President Trump wouldn’t sign a bad deal: “The MoU as described by the Vice President and administration seems very promising,” he told reporters, adding that Iranian media reports about the deal seemed concerning.
🔹 “I’d like to have a diplomatic solution to Iran’s nuclear ambitions,” Graham said, noting his scepticism was surrounding Iran itself, asking what would a good deal look like to Iran? “No enrichment,” he added.
🔹 Graham said: We’re opening up the Straits and we’re stopping hostilities – that is a success of its own, but whether or not we can get to phase two, I don’t know,” he said.
🔹 “When it comes to the nuclear program,yeah, that’s the law (Congress must approve), and he said he’d send it over, so yeah,” Graham said.
🔹 Graham said the President could be trusted, but he didn’t know about the Iranians: “President Trump’s done more to deal with Iran than anybody since I’ve been around,” he noted, adding: “They’re the weakest they’ve been militarily and their economy is in shambles.”
🔹 According to Graham, his goal would be to put Iran in a box for regional peace: “Saudi Arabia joins the Abraham Accords, and that will only happen with a weak Iran,” he said.
⚡️ Former Trump Vice-President Mike Pence said he respected the vice-president’s role in the negotiations, but Pence knew who was making the deal: “President Trump is the one that’s greenlighting this,” he said.
🔹 Pence said: “If I were still at his side, you know, I would urge him to go back to his first instincts when it comes to Iran, and that is peace through strength,” adding: “What we’re hearing echo out of this memorandum of understanding, it smacks of appeasement,” and said: “It’s much bigger than a mistake…”
News from Iraq:
⚡️ PDK Leader Masoud Barzani said that the Kurdistan Region had been unjustly affected by regional conflicts despite not being party to them, during a meeting in Erbil with US Envoy Tom Barrack.
🔹 Barzani said: “The Kurdistan Region has always been a catalyst of stability and has supported dialogue and diplomacy to all problems in Iraq and the region.”
⚡️ PDK, (The Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan), said an Iranian drone had struck one of its civilian camps on Monday evening, stating the targeted site was used as housing for the families of party members, and the attack marked the first Iranian attack on Kurdish positions since the US-Iran agreement was announced.
⚡️ The IRGC has carried out a drone strike on the headquarters of Iranian Kurdish opposition groups near Koy Sanjaq, east of Erbil in northern Iraq, using multiple Shahed-136 one-way attack drones.
⚡️ Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi discussed Baghdad’s effort to bring all weapons under exclusive state control in a meeting with US Special Envoy for Iraq and Syria Tom Barrack on Monday, according to a joint statement published on Tuesday by the US Embassy in Baghdad.
🔹 The statement said the meeting mainly focused on the ‘shared aspirational vision for the Iraqi government to build a brighter future free from terrorism,’ alongside plans to disarm and dismantle armed groups operating outside state authority.
🔹 Plans also include the consolidation of all weapons under government control and reinforces Iraq’s sovereignty to prevent the country from being drawn into future regional conflicts, as both sides also reaffirmed their commitment to expanding trade and investment cooperation.
🔹 Both sides welcomed recent developments including the approval of a Starlink licence, discussions with Chevron on developing major oil fields, the return of US energy companies under security guarantees, and plans with TI Capital to restore the Kirkuk-Baniyas pipeline, according to the statement.
🔹 The statement added that both sides emphasised the importance of supporting a ‘strong, sovereign, and united federal democratic Iraq, grounded in robust constitutional institutions, and ensuring full equality for all citizens, in a manner that strengthens Iraq’s unity, stability and prosperity.’
News from Israel:
⚡️ Prime Minister Netanyahu reprimanded IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir during a restricted cabinet meeting over a letter from the Air Force Commander detailing how Israeli pilots were prevented from carrying out a major offensive operation against Iran last week, Channel 12 reported.
🔹 Netanyahu described the letter was ‘a mistake’ that harmed Israel’s unity and was embarrassing in front of president Trump, claiming the Air Force Commander intended to praise the pilots, but the letter instead renewed attention on the political decisions that halted the operation.
🔹 It followed IAF’s Chief Omer Tischler issuing a letter to troops that announced a ‘large’ strike package targeting ‘the heart of Iran’ was called off on June 8, stating the assault would have included the ‘entire air force’ and ‘hundreds of strike missions in Iran.’
🔹 The letter said the strike operation was halted only 1 hour before the departure of the first sorties, by orders of Prime Minister Netanyahu, directed from US President Trump.
⚡️ Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu’s Likud Party has shelved a planned campaign emphasizing Bibi’s close relationship with President Trump, following internal assessments that found Trump was not improving public opinion among Israeli voters, i24News reported.
⚡️ Former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said on Tuesday: “We’re going to do everything in our power to topple this horrible regime, and I want to tell the wonderful Iranian nation: Do not lose help,” adding this ‘terrible, disconnected, corrupt and evil regime will fall,’ saying: “You’ll be free again, it’s going to happen.”
🔹 Bennett said: “I would say Iran is very simple to the Soviet Union of the 80s – it’s a very disconnected, corrupt, incompetent regime that doesn’t care about its own people, and it’s destined to collapse.”
🔹 The Former PM continued, stating it was the timing that mattered, stating would it collapse in two years, or 15 years: “But we, the Western world, can accelerate this through the demise of this horrible regime and free its people,” he added.
🔹 Bennett concluded: “We know every few years there’s a wave of protests and we know the Iranian regime turns off the internet,” adding: “What if we put in place say 30 or 50,000 Starlink receivers so they can turn on the internet next time and achieve the protest?”
Other News:
⚡️ German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said Germany was ready to support mine-clearing operations in the Strait of Hormuz to help restore commercial shipping, but any deployment would depend on strict conditions.
🔹 Wadephul said the mission must be peaceful and non-combat in nature, carried out with the agreement of all parties, including both the US and Iran, while Germany would also need approval from the Bundestag before deploying its naval minesweeper, the Fulda, which is currently stationed in the Mediterranean Sea.
⚡️ Japanese import prices are likely to rise following the reduced volume of oil flowing through the Strait of Hormuz as a result of the Middle East conflict, which has resulted in a surge in energy costs, reported the Wall Street Journal.
⚡️ Qatar have been preparing to increase its LNG production once the Strait of Hormuz has reopened, with plans to restore much of its capacity within two months, reported Bloomberg, stating that QatarEnergy had informed buyers to expect output to reach around 50% within one month, rising to approximately 80% within two months.
⚡️ France and the UAE have been discussing a potential defence partnership centred on the next-generation upgrade of the Dassault Rafale, following the collapse of the Franco-German Future Combat Air System (FCAS) program, FT reported.
🔹 The talks focused on collaboration for the Rafale’s next major upgrade, expected to enter service around 2030, but while the enhanced Rafale will not replace the cancelled FCAS – particularly due to it lacking advanced features such as stealth -it could serve as a foundation for future fighter development.
🔹 A successful Rafale partnership with the UAE, which already operates the aircraft, would strengthen France’s ability to pursue new defence collaborations and support the development of a future combat aircraft for the 2040s without a reliance on Germany.
