US-Iran peace deal: Is Switzerland meeting between both nations confirmed as Trump signs agreement? What we know

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Esmaeil Baghaei on early Thursday said that a planned round of talks between Iran and the United States in Switzerland on Friday has not yet been confirmed. US President Donald Trump stated that he had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Iran, according to AP.

The White House also announced that Trump signed the agreement aimed at ending the conflict involving Iran while he was at Versailles, although no media cameras were present during the signing.

“The Friday meeting was confirmed until a few hours ago, but when it was decided that the presidents of the two sides (Iran and the US) would sign the agreement, it was decided to pause consideration of the Friday meeting for now,” Reuters quoted Baghaei as saying.

According to a US official, both Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian signed the agreement. Earlier reports indicated that Trump and Vice President JD Vance had digitally signed the document on Sunday and that a formal signing ceremony would take place in Switzerland on Friday. However, AP citing an official speaking anonymously, said that Trump signed the deal in person at Versailles on Wednesday, and Pezeshkian also signed it the same day.

It remains uncertain whether the signing triggered a 60-day period for negotiating a final agreement. It is also unclear how Trump’s signing of the deal at Versailles differed from the digital signature he reportedly provided on Sunday.

Versailles has been the site of numerous landmark treaties throughout history, many of which brought an end to wars or resolved territorial conflicts. The most notable was the 1919 peace treaty that formally concluded World War I. Some historians argue that the treaty’s severe penalties on Germany contributed to the conditions that later led to World War II.

Trump says text of MoU to be released ‘pretty soon’

Trump said on Monday that the complete text of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the US and Iran would be released in the near future, describing it as a “very powerful document”.

Speaking alongside French President Emmanuel Macron during a bilateral meeting in Evian on the sidelines of the G7 Summit, Trump indicated that the document would likely be made public after the formal signing ceremony expected later in the week.

When asked about the timeline for its release, Trump mentioned, “I think pretty soon. I would say I mean, I want it to be released because it’s a very powerful document. This is a very powerful document, and I want it to be released. So, probably pretty soon. I would say after sometime after Friday.”

Meanwhile, Trump and his administration had long pointed to several key issues as justification for taking a hardline stance toward Iran. However, during a press conference on Wednesday, Trump appeared to downplay many of those concerns.

While explaining his decision to support an interim peace agreement, Trump reiterated that Iran must never obtain a nuclear weapon. At the same time, he suggested that Tehran could retain the ability to enrich uranium, continue developing ballistic missile technology, and regain access to billions of dollars in previously frozen assets.

These three issues have been central to international debates over Iran for years, particularly since the 2015 nuclear agreement reached between Iran, the United States under former president Barack Obama, and other world powers to curb Iran’s nuclear activities, as per Bloomberg.

Trump had often pointed to these same issues as evidence that Obama and previous US presidents had been ineffective in dealing with Iran, mentioning that their policies failed to adequately contain the threat posed by the government in Tehran.