US, Iran reach tenuous ceasefire deal: Five takeaways

The two-week U.S.-Iranian ceasefire deal brought temporary relief around the world on Tuesday after President Trump agreed to suspend what he warned would be a catastrophic attack on the Islamic Republic. 

Stocks rose and oil prices plunged following news of the agreement, bringing a temporary reprieve to markets roiled by the war.

Reports of strikes against U.S. allies in the region continued on Wednesday, raising questions about the strength of the deal.

Separately, Israel continued its campaign against Lebanon, a battle that threatened to unravel the deal given Israel’s insistence its fight on that front was not part of the U.S.-Iran ceasefire.

Here are five takeaways from the deal.  

Questions rise over fragility of deal

Big questions loom over whether the deal will last, or even if it is being honored on Wednesday as attacks were reported in the region.

Iranian state television reported an oil refinery on Lavan Island, home to terminals that export the country’s oil and gas, was struck, but it is unclear who launched that attack, according to the Associated Press. 

Iran launched a barrage of missiles at the United Arab Emirates, which intercepted them while Kuwaiti authorities reported three power plants and desalination plants were damaged, the AP reported. 

Meanwhile, in Lebanon on Wednesday, Israel launched its most significant military assault since it began fighting Iran-backed Hezbollah militants with dozens of strikes reported in the south and east of the country including in central Beirut, its densely populated capital. 

Iran sent a 10-point proposal to end the war that includes demands for fighting in Lebanon to end, but Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said the deal does not include its operation against Hezbollah.

Trump appeared to side with Netanyahu in an interview with PBS on Wednesday, saying that Lebanon was not included in the deal “because of Hezbollah.” 

There were some signs of progress.

Iran for the first time since the war started more than one month ago publicly appeared open to negotiating with the U.S. to reach a ceasefire deal and end the fighting.  

Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Araghchi, who has been among the most defiant officials publicly, said in a statement shortly after Trump’s announcement Tuesday night of a deal that the country would allow for safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz for two weeks as long as fighting was paused. 

The Trump administration has said that the Strait needs to be reopened and Iran needs to have no nuclear capabilities for the ceasefire to hold, while Iran warned that the war is not over until its 10-point plan is finalized.

Pakistan has said it will host in-person negotiations in Islamabad later this week between the U.S. and Iran. It said that so far, Iran has accepted the invitation for talks. 

Both sides claim victory

Both the U.S. and Iran claimed victory over the two-week ceasefire, which came at the eleventh-hour as Trump threatened a new bombing campaign targeting infrastructure in Iran.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt wrote on X that it was “a victory for the United States that President Trump and our incredible military made happen.” 

“From the very beginning of Operation Epic Fury, President Trump estimated this would be a 4-6 week operation,” she wrote. “Thanks to the unbelievable capabilities of our warriors, we have achieved and exceeded our core military objectives in 38 days.” 

She said the military “created maximum leverage” which led to “tough negotiations that have now created an opening for a diplomatic solution and long-term peace.” 

While the U.S. succeeded in killing Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on the war’s first day and devastated Iran’s military, the regime survived, with Khamenei’s son named the new supreme leader and its president remains.

Nuclear material also remains in Iran, and Tehran learned how much leverage it can impose on the regional and global economy by shutting down the Strait of Hormuz. During the war,  20 percent of the world’s oil supply was cut off, causing oil prices to skyrocket – while stock indexes fell.

Iran insisted it had “achieved a massive victory and forced criminal America” to accept its 10-point plan, something the Trump administration has not done. That plan includes opening the Strait of Hormuz, but also the lifting of all sanctions on Iran and the end of fighting in Lebanon.

“The enemy, in its cowardly, illegal, and criminal war against the Iranian nation, has suffered an undeniable, historical and crushing defeat,” Iran’s Supreme National Security Council said in a state, according to translations. 

Strait of Hormuz looms as key

According to Trump, the agreement reached between the U.S. and Iran hinges on the reopening of the global shipping lane known as the Strait of Hormuz.  

Prior to Tuesday’s ceasefire deal, Iran had only allowed a few ships to pass through for a fee. Trump said in March that Iran allowed 10 ships carrying oil to pass through the channel as a “present” to the U.S. to demonstrate they were serious about negotiations.  

In their own statement on the ceasefire deal, Iranian officials said for the two-week period “safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz will be possible via coordination with Iran’s Armed Forces and with due consideration of technical limitations.”  

However, traffic did not return to pre-war levels on Wednesday.

According to the New York Times, which cited the global shipping firm Klper, a Greek-owned bulk carrier and Liberia-flagged vessel crossed the strait. There did not appear to be indications of more ships lining up to travel through the waterway.  

Iranian leaders signaled last week that they would enact a “toll booth” system to exert a price on ships seeking safe passage through the strait. The Financial Times reported on Wednesday that Iran was demanding a toll of $1 per barrel of oil passing through the strait, which was to be paid in cryptocurrency.

Trump said separately that he is considering the formation of a “joint venture” with Iran to set up tolls in the waterway but that notion has not emerged from the Iranian side. 

Though uncertainty remains, financial markets responded positively to news of the deal. 

The Dow Jones Industrial Average spiked 2.9 percent on Wednesday while the Nasdaq jumped 3.5 percent and the S&P 500 rose 2.5 percent. 

Oil prices plunged, with the U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate dropping to $93 dollars per barrel and the global benchmark Brent crude fell to $92 per barrel on Wednesday, down from nearly $115 the day before.

US says agreement covers Iran’s nuclear material

While Iran did not mention the future of its nuclear material in its statement, Trump said early on Wednesday that Iran will not enrich uranium and that the U.S. will work with the country to dig up B-2 bombers as part of the agreement.  

“The United States will work closely with Iran, which we have determined has gone through what will be a very productive Regime Change! There will be no enrichment of Uranium, and the United States will, working with Iran, dig up and remove all of the deeply buried (B-2 Bombers) Nuclear ‘Dust,’” Trump wrote in a TruthSocial post.  

“It is now, and has been, under very exacting Satellite Surveillance (Space Force!). Nothing has been touched from the date of attack. We are, and will be, talking Tariff and Sanctions relief with Iran. Many of the 15 points have already been agreed to,” he added. 

The president has sought to justify U.S. attacks on Iran as a means to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon in the future.  

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also addressed the issue at the Pentagon press briefing on Wednesday, telling reporters that Iran is aware “this agreement means that they will never, ever assess a nuclear weapon.”  

Trump’s threats, sudden deal

Trump offered grave threats and extreme rhetoric in the lead-up to the deal, threatening to bomb Iran “back to the Stone Ages.”

The morning ahead of an 8 p.m. deadline for Iran to ward off new attacks, he wrote on TruthSocial “a whole civilization will die tonight” unless “something revolutionary wonderful” occurs. It sparked frantic global panic about what Trump might do, including whether he was considering a nuclear option.

He ended the post by saying, “God Bless the Great People of Iran!”  

The threats came before an eleventh-hour, two-week ceasefire deal after Pakistani officials asked Trump to hold off on his strikes as conversations continued. 

It was not clear whether Trump would have carried out his threats, which has provoked criticisms from Democrats that he would be carrying out war crimes.

A number of Republicans also argued the comments were inappropriate, while Democrats called for Trump’s Cabinet to use the 25th Amendment to remove him from office.

Hegseth, asked Wednesday if the military would have carried out Trump’s threats, indicated it would have. He said it led Iran to come to the negotiating table and that the Pentagon had a list of targets.

Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

More Administration News

China, Russia sink UN vote on Strait of Hormuz; 10 countries join US in support

DOJ says Bondi won’t sit for Oversight deposition on Epstein files

US, Iran reach tenuous ceasefire deal: Five takeaways

House Democrat says he has filed articles of impeachment against Trump

Trump says he’s considering ‘joint venture’ with Iran for Strait of ...

Iran demands $1 per barrel of oil passing through Strait of Hormuz, paid in ...

Spanberger drop in approval rating ‘stunning’: Sabato

CNN on Iran government document Trump labeled ‘fake’: ‘It’s authentic’

Megyn Kelly on Trump posts: ‘I am sick of this s‑‑‑’

University of Wisconsin system president fired after refusing to quit

Trump: Iran deal ‘total and complete victory’ for US

Hegseth claims ‘historic and overwhelming victory’ after Iran ceasefire

Live updates: Hegseth calls Iran operation an ‘overwhelming victory’; oil ...

Democrats build on overperformance streak in Wisconsin, Georgia elections

Cook Political Report shifts 5 House races toward Democrats

House Democrat slams ‘TACO’ jokes about Trump’s ceasefire with Iran

Yes, the moon rotates. So why don’t we ever see the far side?

Former general on ceasefire deal: ‘Iran very much in control’

The Hill Podcasts – Morning Report

© The Hill