Brussels – Washington: Europe and the Arabs

Reports circulating about an imminent agreement between the United States and Iran have sparked concern and skepticism within Israeli media, which believes these understandings could have strategic repercussions detrimental to Tel Aviv's interests. According to a report published by the European news network Euronews in Brussels on Sunday morning, the United States and Iran are moving towards a new preliminary understanding following progress in talks aimed at ending the war. The American news website Axios revealed that the two sides are discussing signing a memorandum of understanding for a period of 60 days. This memorandum would include establishing a ceasefire, reopening the Strait of Hormuz to shipping, allowing Iran to resume its oil exports, and initiating talks on limiting the Iranian nuclear program.

The report indicated that the proposed agreement could be extended later with the mutual consent of Washington and Tehran, provided both parties adhere to its terms.

In the same context, The New York Times reported that the anticipated understanding also includes the release of frozen Iranian assets. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei confirmed that the Iranian nuclear program would not be part of the interim agreement, explaining that the current focus is on halting military escalation, securing maritime navigation, and reducing regional tensions.

The New York Times quoted US officials as saying that Iran had agreed to relinquish its stockpile of highly enriched uranium as part of the proposed agreement announced by US President Donald Trump.

The officials clarified that the proposal did not specify how Iran would relinquish this stockpile, as these details were postponed to future negotiations. US officials stated that Iran's commitment to abandoning highly enriched uranium is a key element of the agreement and a long-sought goal of Washington, crucial to addressing any doubts that Republicans in Congress might raise.

According to US officials, Tehran initially refused to include any provisions concerning its nuclear stockpile in the first phase, demanding that it be postponed to the second phase. However, US negotiators informed Iran through intermediaries that they would withdraw and resume their military campaign if an agreement on the stockpile was not reached in the first part of the deal.

The news circulating about the imminent agreement between the United States and Iran has sparked concern and skepticism within the Israeli media, which believes that these understandings could have strategic repercussions detrimental to Tel Aviv's interests.

In Lebanon, the Israeli army announced that two soldiers were injured, one moderately and the other lightly, when an explosive-laden drone detonated in the south of the country on Saturday. In the same context, the General Directorate of Civil Defense in Lebanon announced, after midnight on Saturday-Sunday, that its regional center in the city of Nabatieh in the south of the country was subjected to a "direct targeting" by an Israeli raid, while media reported raids on the town of Yahmar al-Shaqif and other strikes targeting the vicinity of the town of Jebchit in the south.