On Friday, May 15, coinciding with the end of his visit to China, the President of the United States stated that he is “agreeable” to a 20-year suspension of Iran’s nuclear program, provided that Tehran offers a “real commitment” in this regard.
Shortly after leaving Beijing, Donald Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One: “Twenty years is enough, but the level of guarantee provided by them must truly be a real commitment for those 20 years.” He also mentioned that he is considering lifting sanctions on Chinese companies that purchase Iranian oil and will reach a decision on the matter within the next few days. The U.S. President has repeatedly emphasized preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and has previously labeled Iran’s proposals during negotiations as “insufficient” and “unacceptable.”
On the other side, Abbas Araghchi, the Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic, says that Iran has received messages from Washington indicating that the U.S. is willing to continue these negotiations. Speaking at a press conference on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in New Delhi, Araghchi stated that reports claiming the U.S. had rejected Iran’s response “referred to a few days ago when Trump tweeted that it was ‘unacceptable.’ However, since then, we have again received messages from the American side indicating they are willing to talk and engage.”
