FRANCE PERSPECTIVE

Paris dissects the draft deal with methodical caution, refusing to confuse the announcement with the signature. The French press precisely lists what the 'protocol' would contain: a ceasefire, the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, the lifting of the US blockade on Iranian ports, and the unfreezing of frozen Iranian assets. Pakistani mediator, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, lent 'credibility' to the announcement by citing a 'finalization within 24 hours' and an 'electronic signature' before technical talks during the week. Trump went further, promising a Sunday signing, his 80th birthday, and a Hormuz 'open to all.' But the French angle is the persistent gap between the two camps: Iranian diplomacy speaks of a deal 'in the coming days,' not Sunday, per the official Irna agency. Coverage flags a striking contradiction: despite the displayed optimism, the United States announced on Saturday it had shot down several Iranian drones targeting commercial ships in the strait. This dissonance — celebrating peace while firing on drones — embodies for Paris the fragility of a process far from sealed. True to its tradition of in-depth geopolitical reading, the French press also recalls that a 60-day ceasefire is not a peace, and that a text 'important if not too precise' leaves all ambiguities open on the nuclear issue and frozen assets.