Iran may pause enrichment for US nod on nuclear rights, release of frozen funds, sources tell Reuters

Iran may pause uranium enrichment if the U.S. releases frozen Iranian funds and recognizes Tehran's right to refine uranium for civilian use under a "political deal" that could lead to a broader nuclear accord, two Iranian official sources said.

The sources, close to the negotiating team, said on Wednesday a "political understanding with the United States could be reached soon" if Washington accepted Tehran's conditions. One of the sources said the matter "has not been discussed yet" during the talks with the United States.

The sources told Reuters that under this arrangement, Tehran would halt uranium enrichment for a year, ship part of its highly enriched stock abroad, or convert it into fuel plates for civilian nuclear purposes.

The Iranian sources said Tehran would not agree to dismantling of its nuclear programme or infrastructure or sealing of its nuclear installations as demanded by U.S. President Donald Trump's administration.

Instead, they said, Trump must publicly recognize Iran's sovereign right to enrichment as a member of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and authorize a release of Iranian oil revenues frozen by sanctions, including $6 billion in Qatar.

"Tehran wants its funds to be transferred to Iran with no conditions or limitations. If that means lifting some sanctions, then it should be done too," the second source said.

The sources said the political agreement would give the current nuclear diplomacy a greater chance to yield results by providing more time to hammer out a consensus on hard-to-bridge issues needed for a permanent treaty.

"The idea is not to reach an interim deal; it would (rather) be a political agreement to show both sides are seeking to defuse tensions," said the second Iranian source.

Reuters