“Nuclear Talks Could Be More Productive If U.S. Provided Guarantees on Sanctions Relief” – Iranian Spokesperson

“Nuclear Talks Could Be More Productive If U.S. Provided Guarantees on Sanctions Relief” – Iranian Spokesperson

Tehran has stated that discussions over Iran’s nuclear program could be more productive if the United States offered clear guarantees on how and through what process sanctions would be lifted. According to Iran, Washington has yet to provide clarity on these critical details, despite claiming to seek a new nuclear agreement.

On Monday, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei made these remarks following the submission of a "reasonable" proposal by the United States a few days earlier. For the past seven weeks, the U.S. and Iran have been engaged in negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program. While the U.S. insists the program must remain peaceful, Iran seeks relief from the sanctions that have severely impacted its economy in recent years.

Tehran now asserts that Washington must be transparent about the specifics of its proposal. This demand reflects longstanding skepticism voiced by Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

In a statement published by the state-run IRNA news agency, Baghaei emphasized that a “real end to the sanctions” must come with guarantees, including detailed explanations of “how and by what process” the sanctions will be lifted.

He added, “So far, the American side has not provided the necessary clarity on this issue.”

U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff stated that former President Donald Trump does not want Iran to engage in any uranium enrichment, calling it a “red line.”

A leaked confidential United Nations report revealed that Iran has increased uranium enrichment levels up to 60%. While this is below the roughly 90% needed for a nuclear weapon, it is significantly higher than the ~4% enrichment typically required for civilian power generation.

Baghaei rejected the UN report, calling it biased and accusing certain Western countries of pressuring the UN to take action against Iran.

Iran Responds to U.S. Proposal

According to government sources cited by The New York Times, the latest U.S. proposal includes a call for Iran to halt all uranium enrichment.

Tehran has confirmed that it received the proposal from the White House and is reviewing it. The White House described the offer as being “in Iran’s best interest.”

However, Baghaei cautioned:

“Receiving a text does not mean accepting it, nor does it make it acceptable.”

Since President Trump withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal during his first term in 2018, Iran and the United States have held five rounds of negotiations since April 12 to forge a new agreement.