A deal with the United States to end fighting in Iran has “never been closer”, Iran’s foreign minister, Seyed Abbas Araghchi, has said.
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who has been mediating between the warring sides, echoed Araghchi’s statement, saying “a final, agreed upon text of the peace deal has been reached and Pakistan is now working closely with both sides to finalise the next steps.”
US President Donald Trump reposted Araghchi’s statement which also asked the media not to speculate about the content of the deal.
Iranian media have published details of the alleged deal, prompting Trump to say they had nothing to do with the terms that were agreed to and bears no relation to the truth.
Trump accused Tehran of leaking the details and added that they were very dishonorable people to deal with.
On Thursday, the US president said he had cancelled scheduled attacks against Iran, because negotiators had just made a great settlement, a deal that was likely be to signed imminently.
Trump has repeatedly talked up the prospects of a deal to end hostilities that began with wide-ranging US and Israeli strikes across Iran on 28 February.
