US-Israel-Iran War Latest LIVE Updates: The diplomatic clock has run out between Washington and Tehran, but President Donald Trump is not willing to restart it under the same terms. Trump has rejected extending the US-Iran Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) after its 60-day deadline expired without a broader peace agreement.
Trump said Iran wants a deal but has not agreed to the conditions he considers necessary. Tehran, meanwhile, has dismissed the relevance of the deadline and accused the US of violating the understanding from the beginning. The failed MoU leaves the two sides divided over Iran’s nuclear programme, the Strait of Hormuz and the terms needed to end the conflict.
US-Israel-Iran War Latest LIVE Updates: Trump Rejects Extension of US-Iran MoU
Trump confirmed Monday that the US would not extend the 60-day negotiating window established under the US-Iran MoU.
“Well, they want to make a deal, but they’re not going to make the kind of a deal that I feel is necessary,” President Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Monday.
The statement effectively closes the door on continuing the existing framework in its current form. The 60 days were intended to give Washington and Tehran time to negotiate a wider settlement, but the two sides failed to reach agreement on several major issues.
Trump has demanded a settlement that would prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon. Tehran, however, continues to insist on its right to maintain a civilian “nuclear energy” programme.
US-Israel-Iran War Latest LIVE Updates: Why Did Trump Reject the MoU Extension?
The main disagreement remains Iran’s nuclear programme.
Washington wants strong restrictions that would prevent Tehran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. Iran says it wants to retain a nuclear energy programme and has rejected demands that it considers unacceptable.
The two sides also failed to resolve the future of the Strait of Hormuz, a strategically important waterway that has remained at the centre of the conflict.
The MoU was supposed to help create a path toward a wider peace settlement, but the negotiations stalled before the 60-day period ended.
As a result, Trump now argues that extending the existing arrangement would not produce the kind of agreement he wants.
US-Israel-Iran War Latest LIVE Updates: Iran Rejects the 60-Day Deadline
Tehran has also rejected the idea of extending the MoU.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei said the deadline itself had little meaning because Tehran believes Washington violated the understanding from the beginning.
“We did not start any negotiations at all, and the US violated the understanding from the very beginning; therefore, the 60-day issue is not relevant,” Baqaei said.
Iran’s position makes a straightforward extension difficult. While Trump says Iran has not accepted his conditions, Tehran says Washington failed to honour the original understanding.
US-Israel-Iran War Latest LIVE Updates: What Was the US-Iran MoU?
The US-Iran Memorandum of Understanding was signed in June as a framework for negotiations between Washington and Tehran.
The agreement gave the two sides roughly two months to work toward a broader settlement after the conflict intensified.
Among the major objectives were reducing military tensions, addressing Iran’s nuclear programme and finding a way to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
The White House presented the agreement as a major diplomatic achievement for Trump’s administration. Trump also urged critics to wait for the 60-day period to play out.
However, the deadline has now expired without a final peace agreement.
US-Israel-Iran War Latest LIVE Updates: Trump Says Iran Wants a Deal But Not His Deal
Trump’s latest comments suggest that Washington still believes Tehran wants negotiations, but the president does not see Iran accepting the conditions he considers essential.
The disagreement is particularly sharp over the nuclear issue.
Trump wants Iran to accept restrictions that would prevent it from moving toward a nuclear weapon. Iran, meanwhile, maintains that it wants to pursue nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.
That gap has prevented the two sides from moving toward a final settlement.
US-Israel-Iran War Latest LIVE Updates: Strait of Hormuz Remains Major Issue After MoU Fails
The future of the Strait of Hormuz has become another major obstacle.
Trump has repeatedly said the US has control over the waterway because of its naval blockade.
“We control it. We control it with the blockade. We have a blockade. We control it with the blockade, and I like the idea of declaring it a territory. We can. We have total control over the Strait,” he said Monday.
US Central Command has said that American forces have redirected 64 commercial ships during the blockade since mid-July.
The disruption has reduced commercial traffic through one of the world’s most important energy routes and added pressure to global oil markets.
US-Israel-Iran War Latest LIVE Updates: Why Does the MoU Failure Matter?
The rejection of an extension means Washington and Tehran no longer have the same formal 60-day framework guiding their negotiations.
That does not necessarily mean diplomacy has permanently ended. However, both sides now appear to have little interest in extending the existing arrangement.
Trump is instead preparing additional economic pressure on Iran, while Tehran continues to reject the US demands.
The breakdown therefore creates a new phase in the conflict, with the possibility of tougher sanctions, continued pressure around Hormuz and renewed diplomatic efforts under different conditions.
US-Israel-Iran War Latest LIVE Updates: US Plans Tougher Economic Pressure on Iran
With the MoU deadline now over, the Trump administration is preparing to increase economic pressure on Tehran.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has already warned that Washington could introduce unprecedented measures against Iran.
“Watch this space for more announcements coming next week because we are going to apply measures like have never been seen in the history of economic isolation of a country,” Bessent said.
The administration appears to be shifting more attention toward economic measures after the absence of publicly reported major US military strikes on Iran since late July.
US-Israel-Iran War Latest LIVE Updates: Iran Warns US Against Deeper Middle East Involvement
Iran has responded by warning Washington that continued pressure could draw the US deeper into the regional conflict.
Baqaei said:
“Under these circumstances, the best thing for the US is to extricate itself as soon as possible before becoming more deeply involved.”
Tehran has also continued to challenge the US blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
The Iranian government argues that Washington’s military pressure has created the current crisis and says the US should withdraw rather than demand further concessions from Iran.
US-Israel-Iran War Latest LIVE Updates: What Happens After Trump Rejects MoU Extension?
The next stage of the US-Iran conflict will depend on whether either side is willing to create a new diplomatic framework.
For now, Trump has rejected extending the existing MoU because he believes Iran will not accept the deal he considers necessary. Iran, meanwhile, says the 60-day deadline does not matter because it believes the US violated the understanding from the outset.
That leaves the Iran nuclear programme and Strait of Hormuz as two of the biggest unresolved issues.
Washington is expected to increase economic pressure, while Tehran faces continued restrictions on its economy and shipping routes.
The end of the MoU therefore marks not the end of the US-Iran dispute, but the beginning of a new and potentially tougher phase.
