The Middle East, and particularly the Gulf states, are waiting to see if an Iran deal with the US will actually materialize this week. For months, there have been reports of a potential deal, followed by an inevitable letdown when it didn’t happen.
Regional reporting reflects talks of a potential deal. “Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan [Al Saud] and his counterpart from Pakistan Muhammad Ishaq Dar spoke on the phone on Saturday,” the Saudi Press Agency reported. The report, also at Arab News in Saudi Arabia, noted that “during the call, they discussed the latest regional developments and the efforts being made in this regard.”
The ministers discussed the progress in deal talks and the optimism now forming around the potential new reality. “The statement came shortly after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, whose government has mediated between Iran and the US, said that a peace deal to end the US-Iran war would ‘likely’ be finalized within 24 hours.”
Pakistan and Saudi Arabia are key allies. They are working together to manage the complex situation that has developed in the wake of the US and Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28. Pakistan, which has good ties with the Trump administration, has been a key mediator.
The leaders are keen to get a deal signed quickly
Now Al-Ain media in the UAE notes that “the anticipated agreement between America and Iran will be signed ‘electronically’ and not in person.”
Why? The report says that “informed officials confirmed to CNN that the plans for an electronic signing of the memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran are aimed at quickly finalizing the agreement and avoiding any last-minute obstacles.”
The report goes on to add that “President [Donald] Trump and Vice President [JD] Vance do not travel abroad at the same time for security reasons and to ensure business continuity, although Trump is scheduled to leave for the G7 summit in France on Monday morning. It was difficult to transport Vance to and from the signing event in Europe in time for Trump’s departure.”
An electronic signature is expected, Al-Ain says. The Pakistani Foreign Ministry announced via X/Twitter that an electronic signing ceremony was scheduled for Sunday. But Al-Ain says that, in contrast, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei told the IRNA news agency, “We have to wait to find out the exact date of the signing. It won’t be tomorrow.”
Al-Ain goes on to add that “the agreement, also called a memorandum of understanding, is supposed to pave the way for negotiations on outstanding issues between the two sides, most notably Iran’s nuclear program and its stockpile of highly enriched uranium.”
As the deal is being discussed, countries are also looking to Lebanon to see if tensions there will be reduced. This might mean Israel reduces its advance and returns to a new buffer zone near the border, which would create a new security zone. This deal has been in the works for months. Iran has sought to link Hezbollah and Lebanon to any Iran deal.
This is another part of the “wait and see” challenge the Middle East faces. Will a potential deal lead to more efforts in Lebanon to reduce Hezbollah’s influence, or will the terror group feel empowered? What about Iranian-backed militias in Iraq? All of these issues are now up in the air as the talk of a deal continues.