Negotiations between the United States and Iran still need to resolve several hurdles.
The fate of Iran’s uranium stockpile
President Donald Trump suggested last week that Iran had agreed to ship its stockpile of highly enriched uranium to the United States, but the claim was quickly denounced by senior Iranian officials, who called the request a “dud.”
Iran has about 400 kilograms of uranium enriched to 60%. One proposal being floated is for the Iranian government to unfreeze Iranian assets in exchange for handing over the stockpile.
Iran is seeking significant sanctions relief and the unfreezing of more than $20 billion in assets, a person familiar with the negotiations told CNN.
Suppression of uranium enrichment
The duration of the moratorium on Iran’s enrichment program also remains a point of contention. An Iranian official told CNN that he would “never accept” that Iran is an “exception to international law” and denied President Trump’s claim that Tehran had agreed to suspend the program indefinitely.
In previous talks, U.S. negotiators proposed a 20-year moratorium on Iranian uranium enrichment, a person familiar with the talks told CNN. According to U.S. officials, Iran responded by offering a five-year suspension, which the United States rejected.
Reopening of the Strait of Hormuz
The world breathed a sigh of relief on Friday as Iran announced it would reopen a major shipping route that had been effectively closed for almost two months.
However, that reprieve did not last long. Iran announced it would reimpose tough restrictions on shipping after President Trump said the U.S. would continue to block Iranian ports until a deal is reached. Maritime traffic data on Sunday showed the tanker had not crossed the strait.
CNN’s Mitchell McCluskey, Frederick Preitgen, Alaina Trine and Kevin Liptak contributed reporting.
