Trump Punts on Threat to Strike Iranian Infrastructure for at Least Two Weeks

President Donald Trump backed off his threats to devastate Iran’s civilian infrastructure Tuesday night just under 90 minutes before his self-imposed deadline, claiming that the U.S. and Iran had come to an agreement on a two-week ceasefire deal.

“Subject to the Islamic Republic of Iran agreeing to the COMPLETE, IMMEDIATE, and SAFE OPENING of the Strait of Hormuz, I agree to suspend the bombing and attack of Iran for a period of two weeks,” Trump posted on Truth Social.

The two countries apparently agreed to a short ceasefire while they negotiate an end to the ongoing war. The Strait of Hormuz will reopen with limited capacity, and negotiations will continue with the involvement of mediating countries, Trump said.

Abbas Araghchi, Iran’s foreign minister, confirmed the agreement shortly after in a written statement on X.

“If attacks against Iran are Halted, our Powerful Armed Forces will cease their defensive operations,” he said. “For a period of two weeks, safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz will be possible via coordination with Iran’s Armed Forces and with due consideration of technical limitations.”

Representatives for both countries said a proposal submitted by Iran earlier this week would serve as the basis for negotiations moving forward.

“We received a 10 point proposal from Iran, and believe it is a workable basis on which to negotiate. Almost all of the various points of past contention have been agreed to between the United States and Iran, but a two week period will allow the Agreement to be finalized and consummated,” Trump wrote.

Israel has also agreed to the ceasefire, according to a senior White House official, and will stop their airstrikes as long as negotiations continue.

The Iranian proposal, delivered to U.S. officials on Monday, detailed the conditions under which officials would consider an end to hostilities. The demands included lifting sanctions, a formal agreement that the U.S. and Israel would not attack Iran again and a cessation of attacks against Hezbollah in Lebanon, The New York Times reported.

In exchange, Iran said it would agree to open the Strait of Hormuz, provided it could impose a toll on ships passing through the crucial global shipping route, worth as much as $2 million a vessel. Oman would also take a cut of the proceeds generated by the fees, according to the Times.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that discussions about in-person meetings between the two sides had begun, “but nothing is final until announced by the President or the White House.”

Trump originally pitched the joint U.S.-Israeli strikes as a way to neutralize Iran’s nuclear program and accomplish a number of other goals including the destruction of the country’s ballistic-missile capabilities and the installation of a more friendly leader.

To achieve those goals, Trump made a series of escalating threats toward Iran, culminating in a Tuesday morning Truth Social post in which he said he would end Iran’s “whole civilization.”

The aggressive statement shocked many in Congress, with some Democrats calling for his removal from office and even some Republicans condemning the sentiment.

“I am hoping and praying that President Trump is – that this really is bluster,” Sen. Ron Johnson said during a podcast interview Tuesday. “I do not want to see us start blowing up civilian infrastructure. I do not want to see that. We are not at war with the Iranian people, we are trying to liberate them.”

Republican Rep. Nathaniel Moran posted a statement on X saying, “I do not support the destruction of a ‘whole civilization.’”

“How we protect the lives of the innocent is just as important as how we engage the enemy,” he said.

Democratic Rep. John Larson filed articles of impeachment, as well as calling to invoke the 25th Amendment because Trump is “unfit to lead.”

“Donald Trump has blown past every requirement to be removed from office. And it’s getting worse. His illegal war in Iran is not only driving up prices for American families — it has cost American lives,” Larson said in a press release. “He’s becoming more unstable by the day. His profane and sacrilegious Easter Sunday and subsequent threats, including ‘a whole civilization will die’ and ‘open the Strait…or you’ll be living in hell’ not only foreshadow war crimes, but put our security at risk.”

Trump’s threats also led to at least a temporary halt of direct talks between Iran and the U.S. earlier in the day, multiple outlets reported. Tuesday’s deal was ultimately brokered by Pakistan with last-minute help from China, according to The New York Times.

Pakistan’s prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif, who has acted as a channel between the two countries throughout negotiations, was the first to float a two-week ceasefire deal.

“I earnestly request President Trump to extend the deadline for two weeks,” Sharif posted on X just hours before the deal was announced. “Pakistan, in all sincerity, requests the Iranian brothers to open Strait of Hormuz for a corresponding period of two weeks as a goodwill gesture. We also urge all warring parties to observe a ceasefire everywhere for two weeks to allow diplomacy to achieve conclusive termination of war, in the interest of long-term peace and stability in the region.”