Iran Accepts Last-Minute U.S.-Israel Two-Week Cease-fire After Chinese Mediation

According to The Financial News, Iran, which had rejected a temporary truce and demanded a "permanent end to the war" in cease-fire talks with the United States of America (U.S.) and Israel, has reportedly agreed on the 7th (local time) to a two-week cease-fire proposal. As a result, the airstrikes and bombardments that have continued for more than a month in Iran, the Strait of Hormuz, and across the Middle East are expected to pause for a time.
The New York Times (NYT) reported on the 7th, citing three Iranian government officials, that the Iranian government has accepted a two-week cease-fire plan brokered by Pakistan. Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader, is also said to have approved the cease-fire.
Earlier, Pakistan, which has been mediating a cease-fire between the U.S.-Israel side and Iran, presented both parties on the 6th with a proposal centered on a 45-day truce and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. Iran effectively rejected the plan the same day by sending Pakistan a written response consisting of 10 clauses. Tehran insisted it could never accept a temporary cease-fire and said it wanted a "complete and permanent end to the war" that reflected its own conditions. In response, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif posted on the social network X (social network) on the 7th, writing, "Pakistan sincerely asks our Iranian brothers to open the Strait of Hormuz for two weeks as a gesture of goodwill." NYT reported that Iran initially sought a permanent end to the conflict but shifted its stance in the final phase of talks after its key ally China stepped in.
President of the United States Donald John Trump posted on Truth Social about one hour and 28 minutes before the deadline for talks with Iran expired. He had previously warned that if the Iranian government did not accept the U.S. proposal to end the war by 8 p.m. on the 7th, the U.S. would destroy Iran’s bridges and power plants. Trump wrote, "In line with my conversations with the Prime Minister of Pakistan and Asim Munir, Pakistan’s chief of army staff, I have decided to delay the devastating force that was to be sent to Iran tonight." He added, "I agree to suspend bombing and attacks on Iran for two weeks, on the condition that the Iranian government fully, immediately, and safely opens the Strait of Hormuz."
Trump stated, "We have already achieved or exceeded all of our military objectives, and we are very close to a final agreement on peace for Iran and the Middle East, which is why I made this decision." He also said, "We have received a 10-point proposal from Iran, and we believe this provides a real basis on which to continue negotiations." Trump went on, "Most of the major issues have already been agreed between the two countries, and these two weeks will help us finalize and sign the agreement."
On the same day, the White House also issued a statement announcing that Israel had likewise agreed to the two-week cease-fire.
pjw@fnnews.com Park Jong-won Reporter