US willing to offer Iran sanctions relief in exchange for nuclear agreement

Trump assured Netanyahu that he would not sign a final agreement unless Iran dismantles its nuclear enrichment facilities.

By Vered Weiss, World Israel News

Senior Trump administration officials said Sunday that the United States was prepared to offer Iran substantial sanctions relief if Tehran agrees to major concessions on enriched uranium as negotiations continue over a memorandum of understanding aimed at extending the ceasefire and reopening the Strait of Hormuz.

A senior administration official told Fox News that Washington was seeking an agreement to address Iran’s stockpile of enriched material and said Iranian negotiators had shown increased flexibility.

“Our plan is to deal with all of their stockpile of the enriched material,” the official said. “We see the Iranians making some serious accommodations on these questions that we didn’t see before.”

“If the Iranians make significant accommodations on the enrichment question then we will make significant accommodations on sanctions relief,” the official continued.

The official also rejected reports that an agreement could be signed Sunday, saying Tehran’s political system “does not move fast enough.”

“Even in the IRGC’s own propaganda, they did not talk about tolling the Strait of Hormuz. Our position is quite clear. We don’t think that a toll is an acceptable outcome,” the official added.

Under the memorandum of understanding being discussed, the ceasefire would be extended for 60 days and Iran would reopen the Strait of Hormuz while the United States would end its naval blockade.

During the 60-day period, the United States would discuss lifting sanctions against Iran while American troops would remain in the region until negotiations conclude.

According to Kan, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is concerned about two elements of the proposed arrangement: a requirement to end military operations against Lebanon and delaying substantive discussions over Iran’s nuclear program until a second phase of negotiations.

On Sunday, President Trump assured Netanyahu that Iran’s nuclear program would remain part of future negotiations and said he would not sign a final agreement unless Iran dismantles its nuclear enrichment facilities and removes its enriched material.

A senior Trump administration official also told CBS on Sunday morning that Iran had agreed in principle to dispose of highly enriched uranium, although the official said a deal was unlikely to be signed this weekend.

The official said the administration viewed the proposed arrangement as stronger than the 2015 agreement reached under former President Barack Obama, which permitted Iran to enrich uranium up to a certain level.