US, Israel, Tehran agree two-week ceasefire

The price of crude oil fell sharply while stocks surged on Wednesday after the US and Iran announced a ceasefire and the opening of the Strait of Hormuz.

The price of a barrel of Brent crude for June delivery plunged about 16% to around $92, the lowest level since mid-March, and the West Texas Intermediate lost almost 20%.

Meanwhile, the equity markets relaxed after a series of tumultuous weeks. 

S&P 500 futures rose 2.5%, while European futures leapt more than 5%. U.S. Treasuries rallied while futures for ​German bunds and French OATs surged.

In Asia, ​Japan’s Nikkei jumped ‌about 5% while South Korea’s KOSPI vaulted 6%, triggering a brief halt in trading. 

Shanghai, Mumbai, Bangkok, Manila, Jakarta, Singapore and Wellington were also rose sharply following the ceasefire announcement.

Thank you for joining us. Here are some of the major points in the two-week ceasefire in the war between the United States, Israel and Iran:

• The US early Wednesday announced a two-week ceasefire in the war that started on February 28
• As part of the agreement, Iran is to temporarily reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial passage for global oil deliveries
• The ceasefire was announced hours after Trump had said that a ‘whole civilization will die tonight’ if Iran didn’t agree to his demands
• Trump declares the ceasefire a ‘total and complete victory’ for Washington
• Trump has previously said that only Iran’s ‘unconditional surrender’ and total regime change would be an acceptable end to the war
• Tehran calls the truce a ‘humiliating retreat’ on the part of the US
• The agreement was reached through Pakistani mediation, with talks set to begin in Islamabad on Friday
• China, Iran’s largest trading partner and the US’ main economic rival, also reportedly helped broker a halt to the fighting
• Israel says it supports the decision to halt the bombing of Iran
• But Israel says the ceasefire agreement doesn’t cover its offensive in Lebanon, contradicting a previous Pakistani statement

Indonesia welcomes ‌the ceasefire ⁠in ⁠the ​Iran war ​and ​calls ‌on all parties ‌to respect
sovereignty, ‌territorial ​integrity and diplomacy, Yvonne Mewengkang, ​a spokesperson for Indonesia’s Foreign Ministry, ​said ​on Wednesday.

Oil and gas prices have surged as shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has been disrupted, a serious problem for Southeast Asian net importers, including Indonesia.

Indonesia has also lost three soldiers to the conflict who were serving in Lebanon as UN peacekeepers.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has welcomed the ceasefire between Iran and the US and called for a lasting end to the war.

Merz thanked Pakistan for mediating the ceasefire agreement and said the German government supports the diplomatic efforts.

“The aim ‌now must be ‌to ​negotiate a lasting end to ​the war in the ⁠coming ​days,” ​he said ​in a ‌statement. “This can only ​be achieved ⁠through diplomatic ⁠channels.”

He also said that Germany would take appropriate measures to ensure freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz and is in close contact with the US and other partners.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has welcomed the ceasefire between Iran and the US on Wednesday but criticized US President ⁠Donald Trump’s rhetoric.

A day before the ceasefire agreement, Trump had said that “a whole civilization will die tonight” unless his demands were met.

During an interview with Sky News, Albanese expressed his concern over Trump’s language.

“I don’t think it’s appropriate to use language such ​as that from the President of the United States, and I think it will cause some concern,” he said.

Initially, Albanese had supported the US attacks on Iran; however, Albanese has expressed unease about the conflict ​in recent weeks.

Last week, Albanese demanded more clarity on the objectives of the ​war with Iran, while ⁠calling for a de-escalation by all parties involved.

Following those remarks, Trump criticised ⁠Australia for what he said was a lack of support. “Australia didn’t help us,” he told a news conference.

US President Donald Trump has said that the US will help with the buildup of shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz.

The remarks come hours after he announced a two-week ceasefire deal had been reached with Iran, subject to Iranian authorities allowing full resumption of shipping through the strategic waterway.

“We’ll be loading up ‌with supplies of all kinds, and just ‘hangin’ around’ ‌in ​order to make sure that everything goes well,” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform.

“There will be lots of positive action! Big money will be made. ​Iran can start the reconstruction process,” he also said.

Trump had previously pivoted between calling on other countries to secure the strait, claiming the US doesn’t need the oil that passes through it, and threatening Iran with annihilation unless it allowed crude oil shipments through the narrow body of water to resume.

But, his latest post on Wednesday said, “Just like we are experiencing in the US, this could be the Golden Age of the Middle East!!!”

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said that safe passage through the Strait will be possible “via coordination with Iran’s Armed Forces and with due consideration of technical limitations.”

Missile alerts sounded in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) early on Wednesday about an hour after the United States, Israel and Iran announced an agreement on a two-week ceasefire.

The UAE said its air defense systems were “engaging with missle and drone threats from Iran.”

In Bahrain, missile alerts were also heard hours after the ceasefire agreement had been announced.

Earlier, Israel also said it had detected an incoming barrage of Iranian missiles (see below).

The New York Times quoted an unnamed US official as saying that American offensive military strikes against Iran had stopped in accordance with the agreement, but another official told the Associated Press news agency that defensive actions were continuing.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday that Israel supports the ceasefire with Iran announced overnight — but added that the deal does not include Lebanon, contrary to some previous reports.

Netanyahu’s office said Israel backed US President Donald Trump’s decision to suspend strikes against Iran for two weeks subject to the immediate reopening the Strait of Hormuz and a halt to Iranian attacks on Israel.

But it said the deal doesn’t cover Israeli operations against the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon.

US President Donald Trump believes China persuaded Iran to negotiate a two-week ceasefire in the ongoing war in the Middle East, according to a short telephone interview he gave to the AFP news agency.

When asked whether Beijing was involved in getting Tehran to the negotiating table at all, he replied: “I hear yes.”

He also claimed the ceasefire constituted a “total and complete victory” for the United States in its monthlong war with Iran: “100 percent. No question about it.”

Asked what would happen to the Iranian regime’s stocks of enriched uranium, Trump said: “That will be perfectly taken care of or I wouldn’t have settled.” He didn’t elaborate on what he meant by “taken care of.” 

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt on Tuesday described the two-week ceasefire in the Iran war as a “victory” for the United States.

“This is a victory for the United States that President Trump and our incredible military made happen,” she wrote on social media.

“The success of our military created maximum leverage, allowing President Trump and the team to engage in tough negotiations that have now created an opening for a diplomatic solution and long-term peace.”

Earlier, Iranian state media claimed that Trump had “accepted Iran’s conditions to end the war” and beaten a “humiliating retreat from anti-Iran rhetoric.”

A US journalist kidnapped by an Iran-backed militia in Baghdad, Iraq, was released late on Tuesday after a week in captivity, both the United States and the militia group have confirmed.

“In recognition of the national stances of the outgoing prime minister, we have decided to release the American defendant Shelly Kittleson, on the condition that she leave the country immediately,” said Abu Mujahid al-Assaf, a security official in Kataeb Hezbollah group, referring to outgoing Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani.

He added that such moves would “not be repeated again in the coming days, as we are in a state of war launched by the Zionist-American enemy against Islam,” referring to the US-Israeli strikes on Iran over the past month, just two hours before a ceasefire was announced.

“We are relieved that this American is now free and are working to support her safe departure from Iraq,” said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in a statement.

Based in Rome, Kittleson, 49, has reported extensively from the Middle East as a freelance journalist.

US officials said they had warned her of threats against her several times after she returned to Iraq shortly before her abduction, but that she had not wanted to leave.

The prime minister of Pakistan, Shehbaz Sharif, said early on Wednesday that the United States and Iran, and both countries’ allies, had agreed to an “immediate ceasefire … effective immediately.”

He said the ceasefire, negotiated with Pakistani mediation, also included Lebanon and Israel — despite the Lebanese Health Ministry saying on Wednesday that eight people had been killed in an Israeli strike in the southern city of Sidon.

Sharif confirmed that, as reported, he has invited US and Iranian delegations to Islamabad on Friday to “further negotiate for a conclusive agreement to settle all disputes.”

He praised both parties for their “remarkable wisdom and understanding” and for remaining “constructively engaged in furthering the cause of peace and stability.”

Can Pakistan stop the Iran war?

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A first round of negotiations between the United States and Iran will take place on Friday in Islamabad, Pakistan, according to Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, which nevertheless “emphasized that this does not signify the termination of the war.”

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran would halt ‌its ⁠attacks on neighboring US-allied countries if ⁠attacks against ​it stop, and insisted on Iranian military coordination of transit through the Strait of Hormuz.

 The Supreme Security Council reportedly added: “Our fingers are on the trigger. As soon as the enemy makes the slightest mistake, it will be answered with full force.”

Iran and Israel have also accepted a proposal made by Pakistan for a two-week ceasefire, according to reports in the United States, Israel and Iran.

The New York Times has quoted Iranian officials who claim the ceasefire was approved by the country’s new supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei.

In Iran, state media claim that US President Trump has “accepted Iran’s conditions to end the war” and describe a “humiliating retreat from anti-Iran rhetoric.”

Iran’s Supreme National Security Council says it has accepted a two-week ceasefire in the war, according to a report from the Associated Press.

Meanwhile, US broadcaster CNN has cited a senior White House official as saying: “Israel has agreed to also suspend its bombing campaign while negotiations continue.”

In Israel itself, public broadcaster Kan also reports that Israel is “committed” to a ceasefire.

The Israeli military said early on Wednesday morning that Iran had launched missiles towards Israel, just moments after US President Donald Trump announced he had agreed to postpone a devastating attack on Iranian infrastructure by two weeks.

“[We] identified missiles launched from Iran toward the territory of the State of Israel,” the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) wrote on its official Telegram channel. “Defensive systems are operating to intercept the threat.”