U.S. President Donald Trump arrives to attend a musical interlude before a gala dinner as part of the G7 summit in Evian-les-Bains, France, June 16, 2026. Ludovic Marin/Pool via REUTERS
New details of the deal that President Donald Trump's administration struck with the Iranian regime over the weekend astounded political analysts and observers on Tuesday.
The Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the agreement, that one stipulation of the deal is that Iran will be allowed to begin selling oil immediately. That provision takes effect once the agreement is officially signed, and the signing ceremony is tentatively scheduled for Friday.
"A senior U.S. official said Tuesday that even though Iran would get upfront sanctions relief for oil sales, sustained relief would be tied to Iran’s performance on U.S. demands regarding issues like opening the strategic Strait of Hormuz and its nuclear program. Tehran would still not get immediate access to billions of dollars in frozen funds," the report reads in part.
Over the weekend, the Trump administration announced that it had an agreement in place with Iran that could lead to the end of the more than 16-week conflict between the two countries. Experts have questioned the description of the deal as an "agreement" because it is a framework designed to move the two sides toward a longer-lasting deal.
Political analysts and observers were astounded by the WSJ's reporting.
"Insane concession to Tehran - for simply opening Hormuz, which they were supposed to have done for the ceasefire, and WH says was already open. Under MOU they can get BILLIONS from oil sales, WHICH before the war they couldn’t access even if selling oil. INSANE!!" Josh Block, an adjunct fellow at the Hudson Institute, posted on X.
"Money for nothing and ballistics for free," Philip Klein, editor of National Review Online, posted on X.
"A lot of think tank Senior Fellows about to have Senior Freakouts," journalist Aaron Maté posted on X.
"Money upfront, in other words. The thing they said wouldn’t happen," author Michael Weiss posted on X.