The proposed US moratorium and Tehran's “single digit” response. What “annoyed” the Iranians
Contacts between the delegations of the United States and Iran are continuing after an unsuccessful round of talks held over the weekend in Pakistan's capital, US officials told CBS News on Monday. The mediators are trying to reduce the gaps between the two sides' positions, Axios also wrote.
In Islamabad over the weekend, the United States proposed that Iran accept a 20-year moratorium on uranium enrichment, but Tehran's representatives responded with a shorter period of “single digits,” a U.S. official and another source told Axios.
Mediators from Pakistan, Egypt and Turkey are currently trying to bridge remaining gaps and hammer out an agreement to end the war before April 21, when the current ceasefire expires.
“We are continuing to try to reach an agreement,” a US official said on Monday.
The enriched uranium situation, the critical aspect of the weekend talks
The United States' demand for a moratorium on uranium enrichment was a sticking point in the 21-hour talks in Islamabad.
“The United States has suggested 20 years as a minimum, with all sorts of other restrictions,” a source familiar with the discussions told Axios.
Moreover, according to the sources, the American side asked Iran to remove all the enriched uranium from the country. Instead, the Iranians said they would agree to a “monitored dilution (reduction in enrichment, no) process.”
Axios' sources say differences over Iran's nuclear program have been the main roadblock to reaching a deal.
The Iranians, taken by surprise by Vance's conference
Axios also writes that while no deal was reached, Iranian negotiators believed they were close to a preliminary agreement Sunday morning, but were caught off guard by the US vice president's press conference.
At the conference, JD Vance gave no indication that the negotiators were getting close to a deal, blamed the Iranians and announced that the US delegation was leaving Islamabad.
“The Iranians were annoyed by that press conference,” said a source familiar with the events.
