Iran and the United States say they are "closer than ever" to an agreement
Rubio celebrates Washington's "progress" and predicts a deal will be reached in a matter of days
BarcelonaIran and the United States are very close to an agreement. Members of both delegations assured this Saturday that significant progress has been made in the peace talks. Pakistan, which is mediating, even considers that the possibility of an agreement "is closer than ever" and expects "a crucial breakthrough over the weekend".
The messages of optimism come shortly after the head of the Pakistani army, Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, left the Iranian capital after meeting with the country's president, Masoud Pezeshkian; the Parliament Speaker and chief Iranian negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, and the Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi. "Over the past week, the trend has been towards a greater convergence of positions," said the spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, Esmaeil Baghaei, on state television, assuring that they are in the "final phase" of a memorandum of understanding. However, the diplomat avoided presenting the agreement as imminent and warned that it will be necessary to wait "three or four more days" to check the evolution of the talks.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio also expressed confidence, celebrating that "some progress has been made." "Some progress has been made. Even as I speak to you now, work is being done on it. There is a possibility that, whether it is later today, tomorrow, or in a couple of days, we will have something to say," he declared during an event at the US embassy in New Delhi. Even President Donald Trump stated in remarks to CBS News that Iran "is getting much closer" to the United States.
The draft currently being discussed is based on a 14-point Iranian proposal that the two parties have been exchanging several times through Pakistani representatives, according to the Iranian spokesperson. However, some differences still persist, revolving around Iran's nuclear program. While the spokesperson for Iranian diplomacy believes that the nuclear issue should be discussed in a second phase after an initial peace agreement, Washington insists that Tehran must hand over its reserves of highly enriched uranium.
Another point of contention is the Strait of Hormuz. Rubio reiterates that the maritime route must remain open and "toll-free," while Iranian authorities have announced their plans to regulate and charge for maritime traffic on this strategic maritime route. "President Donald Trump has made it clear that, one way or another, Iran will never be able to have a nuclear weapon. The straits must remain open and toll-free. They must hand over their highly enriched uranium," Rubio insisted.
Trump, who claims to have seen the draft of the agreement with Iran, argues that any pact will "absolutely" prevent Tehran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. "I will only sign an agreement in which we achieve everything we want," he said in statements to CBS News this Friday, and he reiterated a threat: "We will have an agreement, or we will have a situation in which no country has ever been so affected."
