Iran has offered a lesson to the Global South — standing up to Donald Trump can safeguard a nation's interests, while capitulation risks losing far more.
President Donald J. Trump signs a Memorandum of Understanding between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the United States of America at the Palace of Versailles, France on Wednesday, June 17, 2026. French President. Public Domain/Official White House Photo by Daniel Torok.
Iran has offered a lesson to the Global South — standing up to Donald Trump can safeguard a nation’s interests, while capitulation risks losing far more.
The 14-point US-Iran Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), signed by US President Donald Trump at the Palace of Versailles in France and President Pezeshkian of Iran in Tehran on 17 June, 2026 , clearly indicates that Iran has won the first round of negotiations.
Tehran secured substantial political and economic gains, while questions relating to its nuclear programme were postponed to another round of talks. The agreement, therefore, remains an interim framework rather than a final settlement. Round Two is still to come and is likely to prove both more difficult and crucial.
