Progress has been made in the past 24 hours in the negotiations between the US and Iran, though reaching a ceasefire deal by President Trump's 8pm ET deadline still looks like a long shot, according Axios citing a US official, Israeli official and others

• A U.S. official said the thinking in the White House has shifted from "can we get there?" to "can we get there by 8 o'clock tonight?"  
• The key challenges at the moment are meeting Iran's demand for a strong guarantee that the U.S. and Israel won't just resume the war after a pause, and the slow pace of responses from Iranian leadership due to the security situation, sources say.

Regarding proposals earlier in the week

• Iran sent a counter-proposal to the U.S. via the mediators on Monday. While it was incompatible with the U.S. positions, the White House actually saw it as somewhat encouraging, according to a U.S. official and another source with knowledge.
• The mediators then worked with the Iranians on amendments and redrafting, a source familiar with that process said.

Talks

• According to another source, there has been renewed discussion about a possible in-person meeting between a U.S. delegation led by Vance and an Iranian delegation.
• There have also been discussions about a virtual meeting between the U.S. and Iranian negotiating teams along with Pakistani mediators.
• Negotiations are expected to continue over the next several hours until Trump's deadline expires, sources said.