President Donald Trump said Monday that negotiations between the U.S. and Iran to end the war are "proceeding nicely," while warning that fighting would continue if a deal is not reached. Trump also posted on social media that any agreement should include a requirement for several more countries to join the Abraham Accords, the U.S.-brokered agreements aimed at normalizing relations between Israel and other nations. However, skepticism remains about how close the White House is to finalizing a deal, especially after the U.S. military announced Monday that it carried out "self-defense" strikes in southern Iran. Capt. Tim Hawkins, the spokesman for the U.S. military’s Central Command, said in a statement the strikes were carried out “to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces,” adding the military was “using restraint during the ongoing ceasefire."The U.S. and Israel have been focused on destroying Iran's nuclear program and curbing its missile capabilities, but Iran's control over the Strait of Hormuz, which has caused a spike in global prices, has become a major concern. Regional officials told the Associated Press that the potential agreement between the U.S. and Iran includes the Strait gradually reopening in tandem with the U.S. ending its blockade on Iranian ports. Tehran would also agree to give up its stockpile of highly enriched uranium, which could be used to make a nuclear weapon. Officials also told the AP that the draft ends the war between Israel and Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed militant group. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters after the president's call with Middle Eastern leaders over the weekend that there is strong alignment on what a preliminary draft of the agreement should look like. "I think, like anything with something like this, it's going to take a couple of days to settle on even down to the disagreements over a word, sentence, so we'll have to work through that. If there's gonna be a deal, we're gonna have to work through that," Rubio said.A spokesperson for Iran's foreign ministry told reporters that while understandings have been reached on "a large portion of the issues," there is still work to be done.Keep watching for the latest from the Washington News Bureau: