NPR News: 06-18-2026 8AM EDT
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What recent agreement did President Trump sign with Iran?
Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Corva Coleman. In an unexpected move, President Trump and his Iranian counterpart signed an interim agreement on the Iran war two days earlier than scheduled. As NPR's Greg Myrie reports, the countries must still negotiate difficult issues that include the fate of Iran's nuclear program.
Iran's president signed the deal in his home country, while Trump did so at the opulent French palace of Versailles. Trump also issued this warning to Iran. If I don't like it, if they don't behave, we'll go right back to dropping bombs right smack in the middle of their head. The most immediate benefit of the deal should be the opening of the Strait of Hormuz, where the flow of oil has been largely halted for more than three months. Iran also pledges not to build a nuclear weapon, though the exact scope of the nuclear program must be worked out over the next 60 days in a final agreement. Iran will now be able to sell its oil freely, a major boost for its crippled economy.
Greg Myhre, NPR News. President Trump is demanding that the U.S.
What challenges remain in the Iran nuclear negotiations?
Senate pass a controversial bill on regulating voting in the U.S., but the measure has faced bipartisan resistance. Now, Trump says he won't let his nominee to be the director of national intelligence, Jay Clayton, move forward until the Senate does this. Clayton is the U.S. attorney in the Southern District of New York. In a complex step, Trump also wants the Senate to confirm Clayton's replacement before confirming Clayton as director of national intelligence. And if the Senate refuses, Trump says he'll keep the acting director of national intelligence in place. Here's NPR's Eric McDaniel.
The Senate can't do what Trump wants because they don't have the votes. U.S. elections are also already secure. The president keeps making the demands anyway. Second, the Senate is supposed to be able to vet cabinet nominees, but the president's decision to block the confirmation of the full-time guy deprives them of that constitutional responsibility. This is not how checks and balances are supposed to work, but it is where we find ourselves.
And here is Eric McDaniel. Two researchers at MIT say they believe they've uncovered how a top-secret Russian missile actually flies. And PR's Jeff Brumfield says Moscow has fired the missile at Ukraine.
In October, Russia launched what it said was a nuclear-powered missile. The missile flew for almost 15 hours, far longer than a regular missile could. Jake Heckla is a researcher at MIT. He says nuclear-powered flight is something that is possible, but wildly expensive and very dangerous. Heckla and his colleague Scott Kemp analyzed the missile. They believe it's sucking air directly through its nuclear core and spewing radioactivity as it flies. As a result, anyone living near is at enormous risk, potentially. And the missile isn't all that useful, he says. Despite being nuclear-powered, it's relatively slow-moving and easy to shoot down.
You're listening to NPR. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says the Trump administration is launching a six-month review of U.S. forces based in Europe. He says President Trump wants to make sure that NATO member countries are leading and paying for their own defense. Hegseth is in NATO headquarters in Brussels. President Trump is angry European countries denied the U.S. the right to use their bases in when he launched the war in Iran. The mother of one of the surprise FIFA World Cup stars will now be able to travel to the U.S. to see her son play, NPR's William Jones reports.
Cabo Verde's goalkeeper Vizinia has become an unexpected hero. The 40-year-old's saves against Spain led his country to a historic tie. He was in tears at the final whistle, and he said that was in part because his mother couldn't be there due to the cost of a visa. Cabo Verde is among dozens of countries whose citizens face bonds of up to $15,000 to secure a US visa. But House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries says he's spoken with Secretary of State Marco Rubio. And he announced that Virginia's mom will now be able to travel to Miami to see his son play Uruguay with all visa fees waived.
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