US and Iran Reach Two-Week Ceasefire to Reopen Strait of Hormuz

The United States and Iran agreed to a two-week ceasefire on April 7, 2026, concluded barely one hour before the expiration of an ultimatum in which President Donald Trump had threatened to destroy the Islamic Republic. Trump announced the suspension of American strikes on his Truth Social network, citing the intervention of Pakistani mediators who had requested additional time. A key condition of the truce is the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, which had been effectively blocked since the start of the conflict on February 28, 2026. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi confirmed that Tehran would guarantee safe passage through the waterway, though he specified that the Iranian military would continue to monitor and supervise daily ship movements. Formal negotiations between the two sides are scheduled to begin on Friday, April 10, in Islamabad, with Pakistan serving as the official mediator.

Trump claims total victory, but analysts see forced compromise Trump declared the agreement a "total and complete victory" for the United States, stating on Truth Social that it marked "a great day for world peace." He also announced that Washington would "discuss relief of customs duties and sanctions with Iran" in the coming period. „A total and complete victory. 100%. There is no doubt about that.” — Donald Trump via AFP However, analysts and former military officials offered a sharply different assessment. General Dominique Trinquand, a former head of the French military mission to the UN, described Trump's approach as a classic "madman strategy" — extreme verbal escalation used to create leverage before backing down. „We are faced with a forced compromise, treated as a success, while for the moment, it is rather the Iranians who are winning.” — Dominique Trinquand via La Libre.be Raoul Delcorde, honorary ambassador of Belgium and professor of international relations at UCLouvain, pointed to pressure from the international community and the US military establishment as additional factors, noting that a full ground campaign against Iran would have been deeply unpopular domestically.

Iran's ten-point plan leaves core disputes unresolved Tehran submitted a ten-point peace proposal that Trump described as a "viable basis" for negotiation, but the plan's contents reveal the depth of remaining disagreements. According to the Persian-language version relayed by Iranian state media — which differs from the English copy distributed at the UN — Iran's conditions include the maintenance of Iranian control over the Strait of Hormuz, the right to continue uranium enrichment, the lifting of primary and secondary sanctions, and the withdrawal of American forces from the Middle East. Washington has not accepted these terms, and Trump himself reiterated his accusation that Iran is enriching uranium to build a nuclear weapon — a claim contested by the International Atomic Energy Agency and denied by Tehran. The ceasefire agreement, as currently structured, sets no new requirements on Iran's nuclear program, ballistic missiles, or support for regional armed groups. Middle East specialist Jean-Paul Chagnollaud, honorary president of the Institute for Research and Studies on the Mediterranean and Middle East, argued that the war had ultimately strengthened Iran's negotiating hand. „We find ourselves in a negotiation as we were before the war, except that the Iranians have more cards to play in this matter, starting with the question of Hormuz.” — Jean-Paul Chagnollaud via RTS

The US-Israeli military campaign against Iran, known as Operation Epic Fury, began on February 28, 2026, following long-standing accusations that Tehran was pursuing a nuclear weapons program. The conflict resulted in the death of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in the initial strikes, with his son Mojtaba Khamenei appointed as his successor on March 9, 2026. The Strait of Hormuz had been blocked since the start of hostilities, disrupting global energy markets. According to source articles, the American-Israeli coalition conducted approximately 13,000 targeted strikes during the conflict, while Iran employed asymmetric warfare tactics including cyber attacks.

Lebanon dispute clouds regional scope of the truce A significant point of contention emerged immediately after the ceasefire announcement over whether the truce extends to Lebanon. Israel stated explicitly that the agreement does not cover Lebanon, and its military continued operations there following the announcement. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif directly contradicted this position, asserting that the truce applies to the entire region, including Lebanon. According to the Lebanese Ministry of Health, more than people have been killed in Israeli strikes in Lebanon since hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah began on March 2. The Lebanese army has asked displaced populations not to return to the south of the country, where strikes were still being reported on April 8. Peer de Jong, a former colonel and vice-president of the Themiis Institute, described the overall ceasefire as resembling "a tactical pause rather than a strategic turning point," noting that no clear positive military result had emerged on the American side. Oil markets and global financial markets responded positively to the truce announcement, with prices easing as soon as the agreement was confirmed.

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