U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday that he asked Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt and Jordan to join the Abraham Accords en masse to normalize relations with Israel as he tries to negotiate an agreement to end the war with Iran. Pakistan rejected the proposal. None of the other countries has so far publicly reacted to Trump's demand and a positive response was unlikely when the public mistrust of Israel in these Muslim nations remains high over the scale of its military [Read more]

The U.S. and Iran are discussing a plan to open the Strait of Hormuz about 30 days after the two countries reach a deal to end hostilities, the Nikkei newspaper reported on Monday citing a Middle East diplomatic source. Iran would proceed to clear mines from the strait during a 30-day window following an agreement, after which ships from all countries would be able to navigate freely and safely, and Iran would stop collecting transit fees, Nikkei said. The ceasefire agreed in early April [Read more]

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said on Monday that Alberta's planned vote on potentially breaking away from the rest of Canada, while not binding, could become "a dangerous bluff" and that asking such questions was "not helpful." The oil-rich province said last week it would proceed with a non-binding referendum in October on whether its residents want to remain part of Canada. "I saw firsthand what happened in the United Kingdom... They're still 10 years later trying to undo what people [Read more]

(Recasts with latest on potential framework deal) LONDON/DUBAI, May 25 - Iran's foreign ministry spokesperson said on Monday that conclusions have been reached on many topics discussed in a potential 14-point memorandum of understanding, but this does not mean a deal to end the Middle East war is imminent. The framework is focused on an end to the war and a U.S. naval blockade in exchange for Tehran taking steps to ensure safe transit in the Strait of Hormuz, said the spokesperson, Esmaeil [Read more]

Oil prices hit two-week lows on Monday on optimism that the U.S. and Iran were moving closer towards a peace deal even though they remained at odds over key issues, including blockades on the Strait of Hormuz that continued to restrict oil supply from the Middle East. Brent crude futures fell $4.71, or 4.55%, to $98.83 a barrel by 2234 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate was at $92.03 a barrel, down $4.57, or 4.73%. Both contracts touched their lowest since May 7 earlier in the [Read more]

U.S. lawmakers appearing on Sunday morning talk shows split sharply over a potential deal to end the Iran war, with Republicans mostly backing the publicly reported contours of an agreement being negotiated by President Donald Trump and Democrats dismissing it as accomplishing little. * Senator Chris Van Hollen, a Maryland Democrat and a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said the reported outlines of a deal sounded like little more than "the pre-war status quo" with Iran. "I [Read more]

Mohsen Rezaei, a military adviser to Iran's supreme leader, said on Sunday that managing the Strait of Hormuz was Tehran's "legal right" in order to ensure national security. "Iran's management of Hormuz Strait ends 50 years of insecurity in the Persian Gulf," Iranian news agencies quoted Rezaei as saying. (Reporting by Hatem Maher and Muhammad Al Gebaly Editing by Bernadette Baum) [Read more]

A potential deal between Iran and the United States stipulates that the number of ships able to transit the Strait of Hormuz would return to the pre-war level within 30 days, according to Iran's semi-official Tasnim news agency. The naval blockade must be completely lifted within 30 days according to a memorandum of understanding, Tasnim said, adding that part of Iran's frozen funds must be released in the first phase. (Reporting by Elwely Elwelly; Editing by William Mallard) [Read more]

A senior Iranian source told Reuters on Sunday that Tehran has not agreed to hand over its highly enriched uranium stockpile. The source said Iran's nuclear issue was not part of the preliminary agreement with the United States. "The nuclear issue will be addressed in negotiations for a final agreement and are therefore not part of the current deal. There has been no agreement over Iran's highly enriched uranium stockpile to be shipped out of the country," said the source. (Reporting by [Read more]