Trump signs, in Versailles, the preliminary agreement with Iran

BarcelonaDonald Trump appeared triumphantly on the stage of the G-7 summit in the French city of Évian. In the closing press conference, he stated that, with the memorandum of understanding agreed with Iran, the United States had achieved "everything they had set out to do and much more." As usual, he boasted that the U.S. military is the most powerful in the world and assured that they could have continued bombing Iran for weeks or even years, but that he stopped it to avoid "an economic catastrophe." Hours later, he signed the agreement in a solemn place: the Palace of Versailles. In front of the host, Emmanuel Macron, and some cameras, Trump stamped his signature on the document on the table of the state banquet that the French president had offered in his honor. In theory, the agreement was to be signed this Friday in Switzerland, but at this time it is unknown if Trump will do it, if his vice president Vance will go, and if Iran will send someone of importance. What is certain, however, is that Trump has already signed it.

According to the American president, among the achievements, three stand out: ending the current conflict, reopening the Strait of Hormuz, and preventing Iran from ever obtaining a nuclear weapon. However, when asked what guarantees the text includes to permanently prevent Tehran from having atomic weapons, he responded with the also usual war threats: "It must be permanent. And, if not, they will be bombed." Although he added: "If you have a weak and pathetic president, maybe not...". "There is nothing that obliges them in the pact?", insisted the journalist. "It doesn't need to be there. (If they break it) we will bomb them hard", he said again.

Trump used the same argument when asked about the guarantees that Iran will not charge tolls to ships crossing the Strait of Hormuz. "You can't cover everything in an agreement," he said, adding: "It's a common sense thing: they don't want to be bombed."

The North American president said that the agreement will "very probably" be signed, "perhaps tomorrow or the day after," although he has left the door open to the possibility that it may end up derailing. "If they do not comply with the memorandum, we will bomb again. It's incredible what bombs can do," he insisted.

Details of the agreement

Shortly after, the United States government released the full text of the agreement, consisting of 14 paragraphs, through a senior official who read it on condition of anonymity in a call with journalists. According to Efe, the memorandum stipulates the "immediate and permanent" end of military operations "on all fronts" and provides for Iran to allow free transit through the Strait of Hormuz and for the US to lift the blockade on Iranian ports within 30 days, despite Trump having assured this week that Hormuz would open this Friday. The two parties commit to negotiating a definitive peace agreement over the next two months, which can be extended.

In addition, Washington commits to "lift all types of sanctions" against Iran. At the press conference, Trump said that the sanctions would be lifted "when (Iran) behaves." According to the text, the US also commits to "making available Iran's frozen funds and assets" through a mechanism yet to be agreed upon. "We have kept their money and frozen it. At some point, I suppose we will have to return it," Trump said. "If we didn't return it, no one would ever invest in the dollar again," he argued.

The agreement provides for Washington to develop with its regional allies a reconstruction plan for Iran worth 300 billion dollars. Although Trump has assured that the US "will not give them money." "Iran needs investment. Someone will have to help them, perhaps their neighbors..., but there is no guarantee that we have to help them; we will not invest, this is fake news," he emphasized.

On the other hand, the memorandum states that the Islamic Republic "reaffirms that it will not acquire or develop nuclear weapons" and commits to agreeing on a mechanism with the US to destroy highly enriched uranium under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Lukewarm criticism of Israeli attacks on Lebanon

Trump admitted that one of the risks is Israel's attitude towards Lebanon. "Peace in Lebanon is something we will have to work on a bit. It's a very small piece of the puzzle, in fact, but it still makes a lot of noise," he said. "I feel very bad for Lebanon," he even stated, arguing that "for the last 15 years they have been living in hell."

He launched a criticism, albeit in a mocking tone, at Benjamin Netanyahu for the bombings in Lebanon. "Bibi is a very good man, but sometimes he gets a little too excited." "Israel has been a good partner, but they could manage Hezbollah better," he said, and reproached the Israeli prime minister for bombing buildings in Beirut in response to a drone launched by Hezbollah in the Israeli desert "without causing any casualties." Netanyahu should be "softer" in Lebanon, Trump said: "You don't have to tear down a building every time someone from Hezbollah enters."

Trump's change regarding Ukraine

Before Trump's press conference, Emmanuel Macron, host of the summit, took the stage and stated that the agreement between the United States and Iran had received "unanimous approval" from the G-7 leaders. "It doesn't fix everything at once," admitted the French president, but he said it allows negotiations to continue. And he stressed that the most important thing is that "everyone complies with the agreement": that the Strait of Hormuz is reopened "without tolls" and that the bombings stop, including in Lebanon. "It is vital that Iran, Hezbollah, and Israel do not resume attacks," he said.

Macron stressed that the summit represented a "real change" in Donald Trump's stance on Ukraine. The French leader assured that the United States has "resynchronized" with Europe and Ukraine and showed its "clear will" to work together to give "unconditional support" to Kyiv and "remobilize" pressure on Moscow, "even strengthening sanctions" on Russian oil and gas.

"We have evolved things [...] There has been a resynchronization, a reconvergence, a cooperation of all," he celebrated. "There has been an Évian moment," he added, and highlighted that "everyone listened with respect" to the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky. According to Macron, the G-7 has noted a "rebalancing of forces" in favor of Ukraine, "while Russia retreats."

He also assured that Trump has realized that Vladimir Putin "does not have a serious will to negotiate peace." And that all participants have made it clear that Ukraine's territorial integrity must be supported, as is evident in one of the approved declarations.

Later, the American president stated that he had a "very, very good conversation" with Zelensky, but also "a good conversation" with Putin. "I think they both want to do something. They just don't know how to do it," he said.

Disagreements with Trump

When Macron was asked about his relationship with Trump and a supposed seduction strategy with this evening's dinner in Versailles, the French leader replied that he has "always" trusted the American president. "I have always told him things as they are. When we have disagreements, we take responsibility for them. But when he has committed to us, he has always fulfilled what he promised," he stated.

Macron also downplayed Trump's constant threats, both militarily and with the tariff war, attributing them to the fact that "he wants to remind that the United States has deterrent capacity." But he added: "In no case should partners impose tariffs on each other."