live US Achieved 'Regime Change' In Iran, Says Trump

US President Donald Trump said a peace deal with Iran is "now complete" and that he has ordered an end to the naval blockade of Iran's ports in exchange for the free flow of traffic through the crucial Strait of Hormuz.

"The Deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran is now complete," he wrote on Truth Social on June 14.

"Congratulations to all! I hereby fully authorize the toll free opening of the Strait of Hormuz, and, simultaneously herewith, authorize the immediate removal of the United States Naval blockade. Ships of the World, start your engines."

Iran appeared to confirm that a deal had been reached, with its deputy foreign minister saying the "immediate and permanent end to the war and military operations on various fronts, including Lebanon, will be announced starting tonight," according to state-run Tasnim news agency.

However, the Fars news agency -- which is close to the hard-line Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), said that "it has been decided that marine traffic through the Gulf will be regulated by Iran in coordination with Oman," remarks that would be counter to Trump's earlier comments.

Separately, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif confirmed that a peace agreement had been reached, saying: "Following intensive talks, we are pleased to announce that the peace deal between the United States of America and Islamic Republic of Iran has been reached."

"Both sides have declared the immediate and permanent termination of ‌military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon," Sharif said on ‌X.

Sharif, whose country has been working as a mediator in the talks between Washington and Tehran, said a signing ceremony would be held on June 19 in Switzerland.

Trump earlier told the Wall Street Journal that the deal would either be signed electronically by himself or by Vice President JD Vance.

Throughout the day, Iran had suggested that while it believes a deal was close, it would still take more days to finalize.

Iran has insisted that an end to fighting in Lebanon be included in any deal.

Israel has maintained its offensive against the Hezbollah militant group in southern Lebanon.

Iran-backed Hezbollah, a militant group and political party that controls much of southern Lebanon, is considered a terrorist organization by the US, while the European Union has blacklisted its armed wing but not its political branch.

No Nuclear Weapon, Opening Of Hormuz

Trump told the WSJ that the deal would include an agreement by Tehran not to obtain a nuclear weapon and to immediately open the Strait of Hormuz, through which some 20 percent of the world's oil and gas supplies flowed prewar.

The WSJ report added that Trump expressed "no urgency" to extract nuclear material Iran, saying that would come later.

With reporting from Reuters and The Wall Street Journal

Read more here.

Iran's World Cup soccer squad arrived ⁠at Los Angeles International Airport on June 14 following a 15-minute flight from their training base in Tijuana, Mexico.

The team will face New Zealand in its opening group play match on June 15 at 6 p.m. Pacific time in Los Angeles.

The team was expected ⁠to head to ‌their hotel, where a police security presence was already in place.

A news conference was scheduled at Los Angeles Stadium later on June 14, with coach Amir Ghalenoei and striker Mehdi Taremi expected to participate.

The Iran team's presence in California comes amid the backdrop of the US war with Iran and as peace negotiations between Washington and Tehran continue.

With reporting by Reuters

WASHINGTON -- Cale Brown, a former State Department deputy spokesperson during President Donald Trump’s first term, said that the growing momentum in US-Iran negotiations reflects what he described as Washington’s successful use of pressure to force Tehran back toward compromise.

“If we are close to a deal today, it is because America demonstrated this week that it would not respond to Iranian aggression with a mere tit-for-tat,” Brown, now the chairman of Polaris National Security, told RFE/RL on June 14.

“By establishing escalatory dominance, the president forced Tehran to recalibrate its position,” he added, stressing that diplomacy must be accompanied by strict conditions. “We are all hopeful for a peaceful resolution to this conflict, but not at any cost.”

SEE ALSO:

Qatari Officials Arrive In Tehran To Press Peace Process

“Any agreement with Iran must include strict safeguards and robust verification mechanisms to ensure full compliance with its obligations,” Brown said.

He added that he saw Washington as remaining in a strong position during the ongoing talks, saying that potential sanctions relief for Iran should be tied not only to ending Iran’s nuclear program but also to curbing its support for armed proxy groups across the region.

“If economic relief is tied to commitments to both end Iran’s nuclear program and its support for terror proxies, then the president will have addressed the breadth of Iran’s threats to the region and the world,” Brown said.

SEE ALSO:

Tehran's Crackdown On Political Dissent Continuing Unabated

Brown’s comments came as a senior US administration official told RFE/RL that dialogue between Washington and Tehran remained ongoing and was “inching closer,” without elaborating.

The official also said the White House did not believe the latest air strikes exchanged between Israel and Lebanon's Hezbollah -- considered a terrorist organization by the United States -- would disrupt diplomacy. Earlier in the day, Trump urged "all sides" to de-escalate, saying the United States and Iran were “very close” to an agreement.

At the same time, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said the country’s Supreme National Security Council had determined that “the path of dialogue should be pursued,” signaling continued backing for negotiations from Tehran’s top decision-making body.

US President Donald Trump said the Israeli attack on Beirut "should not have happened," adding that the timing of the strikes coincided with a "special day" when Washington and Tehran could reach a deal to end the war in the Middle East.

"Israel has the right to defend itself against threats, but the attack it was responding to was very small and meaningless, nobody was hurt, injured, or killed, and should not disrupt this important process," Trump wrote in a Truth Social post on June 14.

The president added that the United States was "very close to a Deal that will bring peace to the region, including to Lebanon," urging both Israel and Lebanon to cease all attacks.

Trump's comment comes hours after Tehran has played down the chances of an agreement being signed on June 14 and Iran's chief negotiator and speaker of Parliament Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf lashed out against the United States in a post on X following Israeli attacks on Hezbollah targets in Dahiyeh, a southern suburb of Beirut.

To read the full report, click here.

Iran’s chief negotiator and speaker of Parliament Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf lashed out against the United States in a post on X after Israel launched new attacks on Hezbollah targets in Dahiyeh a southern suburb of Lebanon’s capital Beirut earlier on June 14.

Hezbollah is both a militant group and political party that controls much of southern Lebanon. It is considered a terrorist organization by the United States, although the European Union has only blacklisted its armed wing.

Israel's "incursion into Dahiyeh has once again shown that America either lacks the will to fulfill its commitments or the ability to do so. By giving the green light to the regime, you cannot gain concessions," Qalibaf wrote. "The game of bad cop and good cop is outdated. If you lack the will and ability to fulfill your commitments, speaking of continuing the path is not possible."

Israel said it had attacked the southern parts of Lebanon after Hezbollah launched three projectiles toward communities in northern Israel.

"Israel will not tolerate firing at its territory," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a statement issued on June 14.

There are fears that renewed fighting between Israel and Hezbollah once again may postpone an agreement between United States and Iran that might be signed later on June 14.

Details about the content of a memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran that may be signed later on June 14 are emerging, according to Reuters, which quoted a "senior Iranian official."

The text reportedly stipulates that Iran would immediately open the Strait of Hormuz while the United States in parallel would lift its naval blockade of Iranian ports.

Washington would also release $25 billion of Iran's frozen assets, including via direct cash transfers, impose no new sanctions until a final deal is reached, and waive oil sanctions that it has imposed on Tehran.

Iran, on the other hand, should agree to neither produce nor purchase nuclear weapons, enrich no new uranium until a final deal is concluded, and dilute its highly enriched uranium stockpile inside the country -- although an exact mechanism for that still needs to be worked out.

A final deal would then be discussed within the 60 days of agreement by the two sides.

Qatari negotiators flew to Tehran early on June 14 in a bid to finalize an agreement between the United States and Iran to end the monthslong conflict, according to Reuters.

Iran’s ISNA news agency further reported that Qatari Foreign Ministry officials had been dispatched to the Iranian capital.

The development comes a day after US President Donald Trump posted on social media that a deal with Iran would be signed on June 14 -- his 80th birthday -- and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharifi adding that Islamabad was ready to prepare for an "electronic signing" to be followed by technical-level talks in the coming week.

Both Qatar and Pakistan have been mediating between the two sides in a bid to end the war that began with US-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28.

Iran's Foreign Ministry has, however, played down the chances of a deal being signed on June 14 but added it could happen "in the coming days."

Iran's Bank Coordination Council announced that four Iranian banks had suffered a "limited cyberattack" and saw business disrupted.

In a statement issued late on June 13, the council acknowledged that "restrictions" continued for customers of four Iranian banks -- Melli, Tejarat, Export, and Export Development -- and promised that "banking services will return to normal in the shortest possible time and with the highest level of security."

Iranian media previously reported that the services of the banks were disrupted simultaneously, making it impossible to use their mobile banking or ATMs.

"The disruption caused by a cyberattack was limited to these four banks, and fortunately, no unauthorized access to customer information occurred and no information leakage occurred," the council said in the statement.

Attacks on Iran's banking network have been a common occurrence in recent years, and the information of customers of various Iranian banks has repeatedly been the target of cyberattacks and has been bought and sold in cyberspace and the Internet.

Recent reports from Iran suggest that an intense crackdown on political opposition within the country that began during mass protests in January is continuing unabated.

On June 13, the Iranian Writers' Association announced Yousef Ansari, a poet and novelist arrested on January 8, had received a sentence of four months in prison plus another eight months suspended.

RFE/RL's Radio Farda learned that Fereydoun Farahani, a music professor and visiting professor of architecture at Pars University, had been arrested for social media posts he made during the demonstrations.

He had posted a song called In Praise Of The Nation's Desire For Freedom on his Instagram.

In Isfahan Province, the judiciary announced that 100 "traitors" would have their property confiscated, without providing any further details.

To read the full report, click here.

We are now closing the live blog for the day. We'll be back at 9:30 a.m. Central European time to cover the latest events across the Middle East.