Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian’s reported threat to resign, combined with mounting economic pressure, played a key role in pushing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s inner circle toward signing a memorandum of understanding with Washington.
Reports citing The New York Times indicate that, internal discussions intensified after warnings from senior economic officials that Iran was facing a deepening financial crisis, with concerns that shortages of food and medicine could emerge if sanctions and blockade pressures continued.
US President Donald Trump said Tehran was “very keen” to reach a political settlement, adding that Washington had granted what he described as a one-week pause in operations to allow funeral ceremonies for former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
The reports also highlighted divisions within Iran’s leadership over the agreement. Pezeshkian is said to have warned in a key meeting that the economic situation had reached a point where the government could no longer rely on conventional tools to stabilise the country.
Central Bank Governor Abdolnasser Hemmati reportedly reinforced those warnings, cautioning that Iran was facing an unprecedented economic emergency that could lead to severe shortages if conditions persisted.
The New York Times further reported that internal political tensions escalated, with competing factions divided between those advocating engagement with the West to stabilise the economy and hardliners opposing any rapprochement with the United States.
Separately, US and regional tensions continued over the Strait of Hormuz, with Iranian officials reiterating warnings against any Western military activity in the waterway and insisting that its security remains the responsibility of regional states.
The developments come amid broader regional uncertainty following intensified hostilities and ongoing diplomatic maneuvers involving Iran, the United States and European powers.
