US President Donald Trump wrote on 6 March 2026 that “There will be no deal with Iran except UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!” On 9 March, Trump said that “the war is very complete, pretty much”, and falsely claimed that the Iranian military had been destroyed and the Strait of Hormuz had re-opened.
On 15 March he demanded that NATO and China help the US to re-open the strait. Trump again claimed on 24 March that the US and Israel had “won” the war. In late March, Trump repeatedly threatened to destroy Iran’s infrastructure if it did not make a “deal” with the US.
From “unconditional surrender” to a one-page 14-point MOU. The distance between those two positions is the diplomatic history of the Iran war. Here is the complete record.
Phase One: Maximum Pressure (Feb 28 – March 31)
Operation Roaring Lion and Operation Epic Fury launched February 28. Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei killed. His son Mojtaba Khamenei named successor. Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz. Hezbollah joined the conflict.
The US position in March: unconditional surrender, nuclear programme dismantlement, missile programme limits, proxy force severance. Iran’s position: end the war, pay reparations, withdraw from the region, recognise Iranian sovereignty over Hormuz. The two positions had no overlap.
On 25 March, Pakistani officials delivered a “15-point proposal” from the US to Iran, detailing a ceasefire plan. The US proposal included an end to Iran’s nuclear program, limits on its missiles, reopening the Strait of Hormuz, restrictions on Iran’s support for armed groups, and sanctions relief for Iran.
The Iranians rejected the US proposal, with an anonymous official telling Press TV that “Iran will end the war when it decides to do so and when its own conditions are met.” The Iranians issued a “5-point counter-proposal,” including an end to US-Israeli attacks on Iran and pro-Iranian forces in Lebanon and Iraq, security guarantees to prevent future Israeli and US aggression, war reparations, and international recognition of Iranian sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz.
Phase Two: Pakistan Brokers the Ceasefire (April 1 – 12)
The Financial Times reported that the US pushed Pakistan to broker a temporary ceasefire in early April. The next ceasefire proposal was introduced on 5 April, amidst threats from US president Trump to destroy Iranian power plants and bridges.
On 7 April, Trump threatened that “A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back.” On 8 April, Pakistan arranged a conditional two-week ceasefire. Iran’s 10-point counter-proposal was described by Trump as “a workable basis on which to negotiate.”
The ceasefire of April 8 was the first convergence — Iran moved from 5 points to 10, the US accepted a pause rather than continuing to bomb, and Pakistan got both sides to agree to a temporary halt. The 21-hour Islamabad talks on April 11-12 collapsed on nuclear enrichment and Hormuz governance.
Phase Three: Blockade and Back-Channel (April 13 – May 5)
The US naval blockade of Iranian ports began April 13. Iran’s successive proposals escalated from Hormuz-first to 14 points, each one moving incrementally toward the US nuclear position. The Araghchi circuit — Islamabad, Oman, Moscow, Beijing — built the multilateral architecture. Project Freedom launched May 4, lasted 48 hours, was paused. Trump cited “great progress.”
Phase Four: The MOU (May 6 – Present)
The one-page, 14-point memorandum of understanding is being negotiated between Trump’s envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner and several Iranian officials. In its current form, the MOU would declare an end to the war and the start of a 30-day period of negotiations.
Iran’s restrictions on shipping through the strait and the US naval blockade would be gradually lifted during that 30-day period. Nothing has been agreed, but sources describe this as the closest the parties have come to an agreement since the war started.
The gap from March 6’s “unconditional surrender” to today’s MOU is the gap between two positions that had no overlap and two positions whose overlap — on the nuclear framework, Hormuz reopening, sanctions relief, and frozen assets — is now substantial. What remains is the 440kg of uranium, the moratorium duration, and the specific Hormuz governance mechanism.
A sober reassessment in Washington of what was achievable — moving towards a memorandum of understanding, a framework for future talks, is a good, viable and important first step.
Day 71. The complete record shows a war in which both sides started from maximalist positions, fought to a military stalemate, and are now negotiating the precise terms of the managed de-escalation that neither side can publicly call a compromise. The MOU is the document that converts 71 days of war into the framework for peace. Iran’s response is still being reviewed. When it arrives, the war’s diplomatic phase will enter its final chapter.
