US president Donald Trump has signalled that he is open to Iran retaining the right to enrich uranium for civilian purposes, in remarks that represent a major shift in Washington’s position as a ceasefire deal with Tehran takes shape.
Speaking at the G7 summit in Cannes, France, yesterday, Trump suggested that denying Iran the right to enrich uranium was difficult to justify when neighbouring states possessed the same capability.
“It’s a little hard when other people have it, other adjoining states have it and you’re not letting them have it for purposes of electricity and things like that,” Trump told reporters. “You have to use a little common sense.”
The comments come as the Trump administration and Tehran work to finalise a memorandum of understanding following weeks of negotiations. The text of the agreement has not been made public, though both sides reportedly signed the document electronically on Saturday. Confusion persists over its precise terms, with senior administration officials and diplomatic sources giving conflicting accounts of what was agreed and whether the signing even took place.
On enrichment, the emerging deal appears to echo — rather than exceed — the language of the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the multilateral nuclear agreement brokered under former president Barack Obama.
