Iran Seeks Nuclear Deal with U.S. That Offers Mutual Economic Benefits

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U.S. & Iranian flags.

An Iranian diplomat has said that Tehran is pursuing a nuclear agreement with the United States that would deliver economic benefits to both sides, just days before a second round of talks between the two countries.

Iran and the United States resumed negotiations earlier this month in an effort to address their long-standing dispute over Tehran’s nuclear programme and to prevent a new military confrontation.

According to U.S. officials cited by Reuters, Washington has deployed a second aircraft carrier to the region and is preparing for the possibility of a sustained military campaign should the talks fail.

Speaking at a press conference in Bratislava, Marco Rubio said that Donald Trump has made clear his preference for diplomacy and a negotiated settlement, while acknowledging that such an outcome is not guaranteed.

"No one's ever been able to do a successful deal with Iran but we're going to try," Rubio said.

Iran has previously threatened to strike US bases in the Middle East if it comes under attack by American forces. However, on Sunday it adopted a more conciliatory tone as diplomatic efforts continued.

Hamid Ghanbari, deputy director for economic diplomacy at Iran’s Foreign Ministry, said that for any agreement to be durable, it must also deliver tangible economic benefits to the United States.

“For the sake of an agreement’s durability, it is essential that the US also benefits in areas with high and quick economic returns,” Ghanbari was quoted as saying by the semi-official Fars news agency.

He added that potential areas of cooperation under discussion include shared oil and gas fields, joint resource development, mining investments and even aircraft purchases. Ghanbari argued that the 2015 nuclear agreement with world powers had failed to secure economic interests for the United States.

In 2018, President Trump withdrew the US from the nuclear pact, reimposing sweeping economic sanctions on Tehran after the agreement had eased restrictions in exchange for limits on Iran’s nuclear programme.

According to Reuters, a source said on Friday that a U.S. delegation including envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner would meet Iranian officials in Geneva on Tuesday. The meeting was later confirmed to Reuters by a senior Iranian official on Sunday. 

"Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will be traveling, I think they are traveling right now, to have important meetings and we'll see how that turns out," Rubio said, without providing further details.

While the negotiations that led to the 2015 nuclear agreement were multilateral, the current round of talks is limited to Iran and the United States, with Oman acting as mediator.

Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht-Ravanchi indicated Tehran’s willingness to show flexibility on its nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief. Speaking to the BBC on Sunday, he said the ball was “in America’s court to prove that they want to do a deal.”

He referred to a recent statement by Iran’s atomic energy chief suggesting that Tehran could agree to dilute its most highly enriched uranium in return for the lifting of sanctions, presenting it as evidence of Iran’s readiness to compromise.

However, Takht-Ravanchi reiterated that Iran would not accept zero uranium enrichment — a longstanding sticking point in negotiations — as Washington views domestic enrichment as a potential pathway to nuclear weapons. Tehran continues to deny seeking such weapons.

In June, the United States joined Israel in a series of air strikes targeting Iranian nuclear sites.

Meanwhile, Washington is increasing economic pressure on Tehran. According to Axios, during a recent meeting at the White House, Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu agreed that the United States would seek to reduce Iran’s oil exports to China.

China accounts for more than 80% of Iran's oil exports so any reduction in that trade would significantly lower Iran's oil revenue.

Source: Reuters



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