US offers conditional 10-year uranium freeze if Iran gives ‘strong guarantees’

The United States has conveyed a conditional offer to reduce the moratorium on Iran’s uranium enrichment from 20 years to 10 years, provided Tehran provides “strong guarantees” that it will not pursue nuclear weapons, two Pakistani government sources told Anadolu on Tuesday. The conditional proposal comes amid intense diplomatic efforts by Islamabad to arrange a second round of high-stakes talks between Washington and Tehran. “Washington’s priority is still the suspension of Iran’s uranium enrichment program for at least 20 years in exchange for sanctions relief and the freezing of the Islamic Republic’s financial assets,” a senior Pakistani government source familiar with back-channel diplomacy said on condition of anonymity. Tehran has reportedly proposed a five-year moratorium.

Guarantees and uranium transfer

The source added that Washington has shown “conditional willingness” to reduce the timeframe from 20 to 10 years if Tehran gives strong guarantees addressing US nuclear concerns, though no specifics were provided on what guarantees are required. Iran has yet to react to the proposal. Other US proposals include transferring Iran’s enriched uranium for 10 years, “preferably to the US or a third country,” sources said. Iran has publicly rejected handing over its enriched uranium to another nation. Russia previously proposed taking possession of Iran’s highly enriched uranium, but Washington turned down the offer, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told India Today TV last week. Iran is said to hold over 400 kilograms of enriched uranium.

Third-party monitoring

Iran has consented to Islamabad’s proposal for third-party monitoring of its nuclear program by four countries in collaboration with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the sources said. Tehran conveyed its agreement to Pakistani army chief Gen. Asim Munir, but Washington has shown “no interest” in that proposal. No names have been suggested for the four-nation team. Another source told Anadolu that despite “apparent inflexibility,” both sides are expected to find a “middle ground” to break the stalemate. “Both sides acknowledge the fact that war will further complicate this already complex issue. That’s why we are very hopeful that they will agree on some middle ground,” the source added.