A member of the Iranian security forces stands guard under a portrait of Iran’s new Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, in Tehran.
Majid Saeedi/Getty Images
- Iran said that a deal to end the war was not imminent.
- US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said a deal to end the war with Iran could materialise soon.
- The US and Iran have observed a ceasefire since 8 April.
Iran said on Monday that Tehran and Washington had reached understandings on many issues in exchanges over a deal for ending the war, but warned an agreement was not imminent.
“It is correct to say that we have reached a conclusion on a large portion of the issues under discussion,” foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei said during a weekly news briefing.
“But to say that this means the signing of an agreement is imminent – no one can make such a claim,” he said, accusing Washington of shifting its positions.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said a deal to end the war with Iran could materialise on Monday, as US President Donald Trump tempered expectations.
Iran’s foreign ministry said on Monday that Tehran was collecting fees for “navigational services” on ships transiting the strategic Strait of Hormuz, rather than imposing tolls.
READ | Iran war peace deal due ‘maybe today’, says Rubio, but no ‘rush’ warns Trump
“The services that are provided – navigational services in addition to the measures necessary to protect the environment of the Strait of Hormuz, the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman – require the collection of certain fees,” said Baqaei.
He added that Iran was “not seeking to collect tolls”.
If this deal with Iran is real, I will welcome it because every day this insane war goes on, America gets weaker. The priority is to end the war – now.
But make no mistake: these are Iran’s terms. Our nation emerges humiliated.
1/ A 🧵 on what we know about the deal right now.
— Chris Murphy 🟧 (@ChrisMurphyCT) May 24, 2026
The US and Iran have observed a ceasefire since 8 April while mediators push for a negotiated settlement, although Iran has imposed controls on Gulf shipping and the US has blockaded Iran’s ports.
“We thought we might have some news last night, maybe today, I wouldn’t read too much into it,” Rubio said in New Delhi, referring to the potential agreement.
“We have what I think is a pretty solid thing on the table in terms of their ability to open up the straits, get the straits open,” he told reporters in the Indian capital, where he has been on an official visit.
Rubio’s remarks come after Trump said on Sunday that he had told his negotiators not to “rush” the deal, while both Washington and Tehran signalled progress toward an agreement.
SECRETARY RUBIO: Iran would rather invest in the rapists and murderers of Hamas than their own people.
The BBC and these other media outlets should be covering how evil these people are in Iran and the damage they’ve done to people all over the world. pic.twitter.com/l2nWSzhdB2
— Department of State (@StateDept) May 24, 2026
“I have informed my representatives not to rush into a deal in that time is on our side,” a Truth Social post on the US president’s official account said on Sunday.
“The Blockade will remain in full force and effect until an agreement is reached, certified and signed.”
In a separate post to Trump’s Truth Social, it read that the deal “has been largely negotiated, subject to finalisation between the United States of America, the Islamic Republic of Iran and the various other Countries”.
