Summary Iran says a draft U.S. deal could be signed remotely within days. The pact would reopen the Strait of Hormuz, while Iran seeks ship transit fees and retains traffic oversight.
(AFP/Reuters) - Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said that upon finalisation, a draft deal with the United States would be signed "remotely", which could happen "in the coming days."
"As soon as the final stages of our negotiations are completed, this agreement will be signed and announced. The signing will initially take place digitally. Each side will sign remotely. After that, it will be announced that this memorandum of understanding has been signed by both parties," said Araghchi in an interview with state television.
"This could happen in the coming days. I am very hopeful."
He said that while changes in the deal were still possible, the tentative agreement showed his country had emerged stronger from the conflict.
Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran wants a deal that allows Tehran to charge ships "for services rendered" when they transit the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has imposed a toll system during the war, which the US and other nations say violates international law.
"There will be costs involved," Araghchi said, "and those costs must be paid."
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Hours after those remarks, U.S. forces shot down multiple Iranian one-way attack drones heading toward the Strait of Hormuz, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters. The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the drones had posed a threat to commercial traffic. U.S. Central Command later confirmed the action and said the waterway was open for transit.
Iranian news agencies had reported that explosions were heard along the strait in Iran's Sirik port and Qeshm island, which residents and local officials attributed to shots fired by Iranian forces to warn vessels attempting to cross the waterway without permission from the Revolutionary Guards' navy.
The proposed memorandum of understanding calls for reopening the strait and lifting the U.S. naval blockade on Iranian ports, sources on all sides of the talks said. Negotiations over Iran's nuclear program - U.S. President Donald Trump's stated rationale for starting the war - would take place afterward.
The U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters that the deal met Trump's core objectives and put negotiations "in a very, very good place."
Accounts of the draft proposal from Western, Pakistani and Iranian sources pointed to terms that could favor Iran, drawing criticism from Trump, who dismissed the reports as inaccurate.
While there were minor differences in the details, the proposals broadly offered Tehran much of what it has sought, with Trump appearing to secure little beyond the reopening of the strait, which Iran closed after the U.S. and Israel strikes in February.
Araqchi said Iran would, along with Oman, retain control of traffic through the strait, which before the war handled one-fifth of the world's oil and gas supply.
"Our sword will always hang over the Strait of Hormuz," he said.
A Western source said the deal could be signed as soon as Sunday by U.S. Vice President JD Vance and Iran's parliament speaker, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, with Geneva seen as the likeliest venue.
The U.S. administration official said Europe had been discussed as a venue for signing but no decision had been made
