President Donald Trump has formally signed a 14-point Memorandum of Understanding with Iran to end the conflict that began on 28 February, when the US and Israel launched air strikes against Tehran and across the country. The deal, which lays the groundwork for talks on Iran’s nuclear programme, has drawn immediate comparisons with the 2015 Obama-era nuclear accord – the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action – which Trump scrapped in his first term, calling it “decaying and rotten”.
Under the JCPOA, which included the UK, France, the EU, China and Russia, Iran was restricted to a stockpile of 300kg of nuclear material and enrichment of no more than 3.67% for 15 years – a level suitable for power generation but not warheads. The International Atomic Energy Agency said Iran had been complying until Trump withdrew the US from the deal in 2018.
“Trump signs 14-point Iran deal to end war, but expert Alan Eyre says 'he has lost'”
After the collapse of that accord, Iran stepped up its nuclear programme. By the time war began on 28 February 2026, Iran possessed approximately 440kg of uranium enriched to 60%, according to US officials – material that can be fairly quickly enriched to the 90% threshold needed for weapons-grade uranium.
The new MoU text, as read out by the White House to the BBC and other media, states that Iran “reaffirms that it shall not procure or develop nuclear weapons” – similar language to the JCPOA’s pledge that “under no circumstances will Iran ever seek, develop or acquire any nuclear weapons”. But the document provides little detail beyond that, saying only that the two parties “agreed to discuss the issue of enrichment” and to “resolve the disposition of stockpiled enriched material pursuant to a mechanism that will be mutually agreed upon”. Trump has said in recent weeks that Iran’s remaining nuclear material will be removed from the country.
Alan Eyre, a core member of the team that negotiated the 2015 deal, told Channel 4 News: “Trump has lost the war he started.” The deal’s impact on economic sanctions and access to the Strait of Hormuz remains unclear, as critics question what is included and what is left out of the new accord.