The US and Iran have reached an agreement that will end a US blockade of Iranian ports, reopen the Strait of Hormuz and begin 60 days of nuclear negotiations.
The text of the memorandum of understanding between the two countries will be released publicly. US President Donald Trump said it would come “pretty soon” but likely after a formal signing ceremony on Friday, while a senior Trump administration official said it would be put out in the next 24 to 48 hours.
Here is what we know — and don’t know — about the key issues at stake:
Strait of Hormuz
The US said the strait would reopen after the agreement is signed on Friday, with Trump declaring that passage through the waterway would be “permanently toll free.”
But two semi-official Iranian news agencies reported Monday that while Tehran will allow free transit for the 60-day window in which further negotiations will take place, it plans to impose fees after that period. Fars News Agency said Iran “intends to benefit financially from commercial shipping traffic through the Strait.”
Safety considerations will also impact the timing of any reopening. CNN has previously reported that Iran has laid mines in the strait, and negotiators will need to reach agreements on how to remove them.
Ceasefire
Pakistan, which brokered the agreement, said both sides have “declared the immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon.”
However, the agreement does not include a requirement that Israel withdraw from Lebanon, a senior US official said on Monday. Israel, which is not party to the agreement, reiterated that its forces are not withdrawing from Lebanon.
The US will keep its current force posture in the Middle East during US-Iran technical negotiations, with a planned reduction if a final deal is reached, a senior US administration official said.
Nuclear issues
The US said Iran made assurances that it would never get a nuclear weapon. But there are no concrete commitments around Iran’s nuclear program or its uranium stockpiles. That can has been kicked down the road.
Sanctions and frozen funds
Iran said the 60-day nuclear negotiations will begin only after the US releases billions of dollars of frozen funds. But a US official said no money would be released without clear commitments by Iran.
The economy
Oil prices fell to their lowest levels in three months on the announcement but remain around $10 a barrel above their pre-war levels. A broader economic recovery will likely take months.
CNN’s Adam Cancryn, Jennifer Hansler and Kevin Liptak contributed reporting to this post, which has been updated.
