The U.S. and Iran have agreed to 'stand down' and resume technical talks, allowing vessels allowed to move freely under the interim peace deal, a U.S. official said.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said the understanding with the U.S. was a bilateral matter, and that Tehran would “fulfil its obligations” if Washington adhered to the MoU.
“Our approach to unreasonable boasting and unfounded threats is to rely on rationality and human dignity in decision-making, and decisive and fearless defence when taking action,” he wrote on X.
U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters in the Oval Office that the United States and Iran would meet in Qatar this week, despite Tehran saying no talks are scheduled.
Trump said the meeting in Doha "could be important, or it could not", adding that the objective remained Iran's "denuclearisation" and insisting Tehran would not be allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said on 29 June that no talks between Iran and the United States are scheduled in the coming days.
He added that an Iranian technical delegation will visit Qatar this week, but said the trip is not connected to visits by U.S. officials.
Baghaei said Tehran has not begun negotiations on a final deal, as certain points of the MoU must first be implemented, which he said remains Iran’s current priority.
The removal of mines from the Strait of Hormuz is to be carried out solely by Iran according to the Islamabad MoU between Tehran and Washington, Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said in a post on X on Monday, in response to French President Macron's comments on the subject.
Emmanuel Macron said on Monday that France and Oman are working together to de-escalate tensions in the Middle East and will cooperate with their partners on clearing mines from the Strait of Hormuz.
The situation is sensitive and complex, we strongly advise France not to complicate it further with its provocations, Gharibabadi added.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and special envoy Steve Witkoff will brief the full U.S. House of Representatives and Senate by phone on Monday on the deal with Iran, a White House official said.
France and Oman are working together to de-escalate tensions in the Middle East and will cooperate with their partners on clearing mines from the Strait of Hormuz, French President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday.
"We have decided to collaborate, in conjunction with our partners, on clearing mines from the Strait in order to secure maritime routes and guarantee free and unconditional passage through the Strait of Hormuz," Macton wrote on X after meeting with Oman's Sultan Haitham bin Tariq Al at the Elysee Palace.
Wall Street's main indexes opened higher on Monday as easing tensions in the Middle East lifted sentiment following days of hostilities between the U.S. and Iran.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI rose 119.0 points, or 0.23%, at the open to 51,995.14. The S&P 500 .SPX rose 37.9 points, or 0.51%, at the open to 7,391.88, while the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC rose 204.5 points, or 0.81%, to 25,502.088.
U.S. President Donald Trump's envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will attend an expected meeting with Iran in Doha on Tuesday, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said.
"Special Envoy Witkoff and Jared Kushner will be flying to Doha for high-level meetings this week, as we continue to discuss the memorandum of understanding. On the sidelines of those high-level talks, there will be the technical talks," she said in an interview with Fox News on Monday.
U.S. President Donald Trump said a meeting on Iran would be held Tuesday in Doha, without giving further details.
"Iran has requested a meeting. It will take place tomorrow in Doha," Trump wrote in all capital letters in a social media post on Monday.
Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said on Monday that technical working group meetings under the Iran-U.S. memorandum of understanding were not scheduled for this week, Iran's Tasnim news agency reported.
Earlier, a source with knowledge of the talks told Reuters that Iranian and U.S. technical teams working on implementing the MoU would be meetingin the coming days.
Gharibabadi also said consultations between Iran and Qatar regarding the U.S. commitments were continuing as planned but that technical working group talks in Doha had not been confirmed.
Commercial traffic through the Strait of Hormuz continued at a reduced pace over the weekend after attacks on two vessels renewed concerns over the safety of one of the world’s most important energy chokepoints.
Tracking data showed that some open transits were still taking place after a Singapore-registered container ship, Ever Lovely, was damaged on 25 June and the Panama-flagged tanker M/T Kiku hit on 27 June.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Monday that $6 billion of Iran’s $12 billion in frozen assets held in Qatar would be released following an agreement with the United States to lift sanctions on Iran’s oil and petrochemical sectors.
The funds will be returned to Iran, according to Iranian state media.
Iran and the United States signed an interim agreement this month to prepare the ground for a settlement of their conflict.
Iranian and U.S. technical teams working on the implementation of a memorandum of understanding are set to meet in Doha in the coming days, a source with knowledge of the talks told Reuters on Monday.
Mediators have established communications channels to de-escalate any incidents, and technical talks are set to continue, the source added.
Pakistan has launched an urgent tender to purchase a liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargo for delivery this week. The move comes as renewed tensions in the Strait of Hormuz disrupt energy flows through one of the world’s key shipping routes.
The cargo is scheduled for delivery between 30 June and 4 July. The tender seeks 140,000 cubic metres of LNG, with a tolerance of plus or minus 10%.
Iran and Oman have conducted the first meeting of a joint committee on the Strait of Hormuz in Muscat, an Iranian deputy foreign minister said on his X account on Monday.
Kazem Gharibabadi said they had exchanged views on Gulf coastal states' sovereign rights as well as on the strait's future management based on the interim deal signed this month by Tehran and Washington.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and French President Emmanuel Macron discussed developments related to the Iran-U.S. memorandum of understanding and regional stability during a phone call on Sunday, according to the Saudi state news agency SPA.
The two leaders reviewed regional and international developments and emphasised the importance of ensuring freedom of navigation in the region and supporting diplomatic efforts to reduce escalation.
They also discussed recent developments regarding the memorandum signed between the U.S. and Iran, as well as efforts to reach comprehensive solutions aimed at achieving security and stability in the region.
Asian stocks traded cautiously on Monday after the U.S. and Iran agreed to pause hostilities and resume talks, easing immediate fears of a wider conflict.
Oil prices edged higher on uncertainty over the fragile peace deal, while the dollar remained near a one-year high as investors also weighed concerns over AI stocks and interest rates.
Israel says its military has destroyed a 200-metre Hezbollah tunnel in the southern Lebanese village of Majdal Zoun, two days after a U.S.-brokered security arrangement was agreed.
A joint statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz said Washington had been informed before the strike and that the tunnel contained hundreds of weapons and launchers.
Hezbollah called the attacks a “flagrant” ceasefire violation and said it reserved the right to defend Lebanon.
The United States and Iran have agreed to stand down on strikes for the time being, while vessels will be allowed to move freely, according to a U.S. official.
The official said technical talks would continue across all areas covered by the memorandum of understanding (MOU), signalling that negotiations remain ongoing despite recent tensions.
"Technical talks are slated to continue on all areas of the MOU. Both sides will stand down for now and vessels can move freely," the official said.
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An agreement between Iran and the U.S. to reopen the Strait of Hormuz is expected "soon," a U.S. official has said. The deal would result in the resumption of commercial shipping through the sea passage and the lifting of an American naval blockade on Iranian ports.
Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief. Here are the top news stories for the 8th of August, covering the latest developments.
U.S. President Donald Trump said negotiations to reopen the Strait of Hormuz are progressing and suggested an agreement with Iran could be reached “soon”.
A deal on a new route for vessels through the Strait of Hormuz is "very close," Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said, while warning that the reopening of the waterway depends on the U.S. meeting other conditions, including paying compensation to Iran.
Typhoon Dolphin lashed Japan’s southern Okinawa prefecture on Saturday, injuring six people, disrupting flights and leaving more than 50,000 buildings without power, as China shut ports and suspended transport services ahead of the storm’s expected arrival on its east coast.
The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has warned that soaring fertiliser prices could threaten Afghanistan’s 2027 wheat harvest despite favourable growing conditions, appealing for $38.3 million to support farmers before planting.
Kazakhstan has released an Amur tiger into the wild for the first time in more than 70 years, marking the beginning of a long-term effort to restore the species to its historic range in Central Asia.
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev and Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan remarked upon progress made towards normalising relations between Baku and Yerevan in a phone call on the first anniversary of the Washington peace summit.
Tourists may soon be able to view Kazakhstan’s tourist sites by drone. Officials are planning to trial flights of between five and 30 minutes over landmarks in the country, its Ministry of Transport said.
Tashkent has begun work to open the Islam Karimov Memorial Complex to the public as part of plans for a 700-hectare green corridor linking major parks and public spaces across the Uzbek capital.
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