Trump seeks to modify US-Iran deal to end war

Washington: US President Donald Trump is planning to modify the terms of the agreement with Iran to end the war, even as Tehran prepares to introduce new elements, an American media outlet has reported.

In an endless ping-pong, the White House awaits a new response from Iran in a negotiation that, as three sources told The New York Times, risks starting from a more backward square.

According to one of the officials interviewed by the newspaper, Trump would like to accelerate negotiations by putting more pressure on the counterpart, but has to deal with the complex Iranian hierarchy, reports Adnkronos news agency.

Final approval, in Tehran, rests with Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei. Any modification to the memorandum of understanding, which forms the basis of the agreement, inevitably prolongs the negotiation times.

After Trump’s re-launch, in any case, Iran will seek to introduce new amendments to the draft agreement, as reported by the Tasnim news agency.

Trump, according to information gathered by Axios, would like to make more detailed provisions regarding the management of 60 per cent enriched uranium stockpiles still held by Tehran and the modalities for reopening the Strait of Hormuz to maritime traffic.

The draft agreement currently includes Iran’s commitment not to pursue the development of nuclear weapons and a 60-day period, during which the two countries would negotiate Tehran’s nuclear obligations and the fate of the accumulated fissile material.

The US President, a source reports, intends to insert more precise indications on the timing and methods by which the United States would acquire such material.

“The only guarantee I need to have is that there will be no nuclear weapons. They have accepted this,” Trump’s certainty expressed to Fox News. “Initially, they said: ‘We will not develop a nuclear weapon’. I replied: ‘Okay, but what happens if you buy a nuclear weapon?’ So now the text says: ‘We will not develop or acquire a nuclear military weapon in any way’. It’s a big difference,” Trump stated, adding, “They are very tough negotiators, and it takes a long time, but I’m not in a hurry.”

The White House, however, continues to express confidence in the conclusion of the agreement. “There will be an agreement,” a senior official said, adding that the finalisation could take from a few days to over a week.

“Talks and exchange of messages” with the United States “are ongoing, and until they produce a concrete result, it is not possible to judge them,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told state TV, adding, “Everything said at this stage is speculation and should not be given too much importance.”

From Tehran, however, come the words of several heavyweights. Araghchi’s conciliatory tones were opposed by those of Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, speaker of parliament. “We will not approve any agreement until we are sure that we have guaranteed the rights of the Iranian people,” he said. “Those involved in diplomacy do not trust the words or promises of the United States,” Ghalibaf continued, emphasising that any changes to the country’s development plan will be examined by specialised parliamentary committees, with particular attention to reconstruction after the war damage.

In a framework that is, to say the least, complex, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian reportedly submitted a letter of resignation to Mojtaba Khamenei, as revealed by a source to Iran International, an Iranian opposition website based in London.

The news was immediately denied by the Tehran government, which accused the “lying media.” In the letter sent on Sunday, Pezeshkian reportedly wrote that the president and the government have been de facto excluded from the most important and vital decision-making processes in the country, and that the vacuum created by this situation has allowed intransigent factions within the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to take control of the situation.

Pezeshkian reportedly added that under such circumstances, he is unable to lead the government and fulfil his responsibilities, and for this reason, he would have asked to resign immediately.

It is not yet clear, Iran International continues, whether Khamenei will accept the president’s commitment, but the content of the letter indicates a deep and unprecedented fracture at the highest levels of power.

Tehran will seek to introduce new amendments to the draft agreement with the United States. This was announced by the Iranian news agency Tasnim, considered close to the Revolutionary Guards, citing a “source familiar with the details.”

According to the agency, Tehran’s decision was made after US President Donald Trump first made changes to the proposed text.

IANS