Trump rejects Iran truce extension as Lebanon flares

Prospects for a broader Middle East settlement have deteriorated after US President Donald Trump ruled out extending a temporary agreement with Iran, while renewed Israeli-Hezbollah violence placed Lebanon’s fragile ceasefire under mounting pressure.
Asked whether Washington would seek more time under the memorandum of understanding signed with Tehran in June, Trump gave a categorical response: “No.” The agreement provided a 60-day window to negotiate a durable settlement covering the US-Iran conflict, Iran’s nuclear programme and the security of the Strait of Hormuz. The deadline expired on Monday without a comprehensive agreement.

The June accord had raised expectations that more than three months of regional warfare could give way to diplomacy. Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian signed the interim arrangement on June 17 after mediation led by Pakistan, extending a ceasefire and creating a negotiating period for a permanent settlement.

Yet many of its central provisions were never implemented. Washington and Tehran remain divided over Iran’s nuclear activities, sanctions relief and access through the Strait of Hormuz. The waterway has become one of the most sensitive points in the dispute because of its importance to international energy supplies and Iran’s insistence on a greater role in determining maritime arrangements there.

Iran has now signalled that it could adopt a “fully offensive” military posture if diplomacy fails. A senior Iranian official warned that forces should prepare for escalation in the Strait of Hormuz and elsewhere, including possible action against the US naval blockade. Tehran has maintained that Washington failed to fulfil undertakings involving sanctions, frozen assets and restrictions on Iranian ports.

Trump, meanwhile, has said preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon remains Washington’s overriding objective. His administration argues that Tehran failed to meet its responsibilities under the interim arrangement, particularly those linked to navigation through Hormuz. The president has also spoken of continued US control over the strategic waterway, deepening the confrontation over its future status.

Diplomatic contacts have not stopped entirely. Messages have passed indirectly through intermediaries including Pakistan and Qatar, but negotiations have produced little visible movement. Tehran said last week that there had been no discussions on formally extending the 60-day period and demanded that Washington first return to the terms of the June agreement.

The deterioration in US-Iran diplomacy has coincided with another escalation in Lebanon, where a June 20 ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah is facing its most serious tests. Israeli air strikes in southern Lebanon on Saturday killed at least 11 people, including civilians, following a Hezbollah drone attack that wounded three Israeli soldiers. Israel said one of the strikes killed Hezbollah commander Ali Samir Al-Haj Hassan.

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam condemned the attacks, while President Joseph Aoun said the violence threatened negotiations intended to stabilise the border. Hezbollah has resisted demands that it surrender its weapons and has accused Washington of favouring Israel in talks over the group’s disarmament and an Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory.

Israel and Hezbollah had agreed to halt fighting in June after US and Qatari mediation, with Iranian involvement. The pause followed heavy exchanges that had threatened to derail the emerging US-Iran framework almost as soon as it was signed.

Israel nevertheless retains forces inside a security zone in southern Lebanon. The United Nations peacekeeping mission said this week that Israeli flags placed along a main coastal highway in Lebanese territory violated a UN Security Council resolution and urged all parties to avoid provocative actions.

Lebanon is also attempting to implement a broader programme under which state forces would expand their authority in the south while Hezbollah relinquishes its independent arsenal. Aoun has sought US pressure for an Israeli withdrawal, but Hezbollah remains outside the formal negotiating process and has rejected moves towards unilateral disarmament.

The expanding confrontation has substantial economic implications. The Strait of Hormuz was traditionally a route for roughly a fifth of global oil supplies, making prolonged disruption a risk for crude prices, shipping costs and inflation. Commercial traffic has been sharply constrained since the war intensified, leaving energy markets exposed to any fresh military confrontation involving Iran and US naval forces.