The US-Iran war: ceasefire and peace negotiations

Since the United States and Israel went to war with Iran in late February 2026,^[1] Pakistan and other mediators have brokered truces and talks, but no lasting peace. A two-week ceasefire in April^[2] led to US-Iran talks in Islamabad, which ended without a deal.^[3] In June the two governments signed a 14-point memorandum of understanding that set a 60-day clock for a final agreement,^[4][5] but it collapsed within weeks as fighting resumed around the Strait of Hormuz,^[6] and the deadline passed with no deal.^[5] In October, President Donald Trump threatened Iran if it did not sign a deal,^[7] then said he would not resume strikes before the November 3 midterm elections.^[8] Qatari mediators presented a new draft deal in late October, and Iran said in early November that it had a two-day plan to reopen the strait and resume nuclear talks if Washington met its demands.^[9][10] After Democrats swept the midterms, Iran's leaders said voters had rejected Trump's war, and its chief negotiator said it was up to the United States to prevent renewed war.^[11][12] After meeting Qatar's prime minister on November 9, Trump called the war militarily "effectively over,"^[13] but on November 12 he said the United States did not need a deal with Iran and told Vice President JD Vance, who had a role in the talks, to focus on domestic issues instead.^[14]

Before the US-Iran war, the two countries held indirect negotiations over Iran's nuclear program under the threat of US military action. The third round, in Geneva on February 26, 2026, ended without a deal, leaving the danger of another war in the region.^[15] The war began days later with joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran that killed its supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.^[1] In late March, President Donald Trump's administration sent Iran a 15-point plan to end the war through Pakistan, which Iran rejected.^[16]

On April 7, less than two hours before his deadline for bombing Iran's power plants unless it reopened the Strait of Hormuz, Trump agreed after a call with Pakistan's prime minister to suspend the bombing for two weeks.^[2] Vice President JD Vance then led a US delegation to Islamabad. Those talks ended after 21 hours without an agreement, with Vance saying Iran had refused to commit to not developing a nuclear weapon.^[3] A day before the truce was due to expire, Trump extended it indefinitely while another round of talks was on hold.^[17]

By late May, Trump said an agreement to end the war and reopen the strait had been "largely negotiated."^[18] In mid-June he signed a 14-point memorandum of understanding with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Pakistan's prime minister.^[4] It was the first agreement signed by an American and an Iranian president since Iran's 1979 revolution, according to Reuters.^[19] The agreement set a 60-day deadline for ending the war and reaching an accord on Iran's nuclear program.^[5]

On July 8, after renewed US and Iranian attacks, Trump said he believed the agreement was "over,"^[6] and on July 18 an Iranian negotiator said Tehran had suspended its commitments as the two countries traded strikes on infrastructure and military sites.^[20] The 60-day deadline expired in August without a final deal.^[5]

In September, Iran proposed reopening the Strait of Hormuz within seven days, but Trump rejected the offer.^[21] On September 30, Iranian officials said they had received an official US response; they did not disclose whether it was a rejection.^[22] On October 1, Trump said Iran would "either sign a very fair deal, or they won't exist any longer," and suggested he might resume bombing after the November midterm elections.^[7] In a separate October statement, he said he would not resume strikes before the November 3 vote.^[8] A senior Iranian official subsequently called the latest US response "insufficient" and warned of attacks on regional data centers and cables if fighting intensified again.^[23] On October 21, Iran told the United States to prove that it wanted peace by lifting its blockade.^[24]

Diplomacy and the threat of strikes ran side by side as the midterms approached. Officials from Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan met Iran's leaders in Tehran on October 26,^[25] while US officials told allies to prepare for possible renewed action after the election.^[26] Trump denied reports that he had directed Vice President JD Vance to revive negotiations.^[27] Qatari mediators gave Iran a new draft deal,^[9] and talks in Doha involved the possible release of $6 billion in Iranian assets;^[10] Iranian negotiators left without a breakthrough while a draft proposal circulated, with a follow-up meeting expected.^[28][29] Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged Trump to order another wave of strikes, officials told the Associated Press.^[30] The United States carried out what officials called limited defensive strikes on Iran's Qeshm Island on November 2,^[11] and Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, Iran's chief negotiator, said Tehran had sent a "firm and rational response" to Washington.^[12]

After the midterms, the diplomacy gathered pace. Iran reviewed Qatari proposals on its nuclear program,^[31] and Trump discussed de-escalation with Qatar's emir by phone.^[32] On November 6 the United States struck Iran's air defense systems in strikes Trump called "minor," its second round that week.^[33] Two days later Trump said it was "highly unlikely" he would need to order the United States back to war as long as negotiations over Iran's nuclear program and the Strait of Hormuz made progress, and he prepared to meet Qatar's prime minister, though senior US and Gulf officials cast doubt on the chances of a deal.^[13][34] Secretary of State Marco Rubio called Iran's demands "outrageous and ridiculous."^[35] The Jewish Voice reported that a phone call between Trump and Netanyahu over Iran strategy turned into a heated confrontation.^[36] After meeting Qatar's prime minister on November 9, Trump said he believed the war was militarily "effectively over."^[13] Three days later he posted "We don't need a deal with Iran" and told Vance to give "his complete and total attention" to alleged crime and corruption in Democratic-run cities, saying that effort could save more money than a deal with Iran.^[14]