The American president is considering various inducements to persuade Tehran to cease uranium enrichment, according to the network.
According to CNN sources on Thursday, the administration led by US President Donald Trump is reportedly weighing a $30 billion initiative aimed at assisting Iran in establishing a civilian nuclear program. This is intended as an inducement for Iran to re-engage in comprehensive discussions regarding a nuclear agreement.
Even as Iran and Israel conducted reciprocal strikes earlier in the month, Washington and its Middle Eastern allies have been engaged in covert discussions with Tehran, as conveyed by four sources privy to the situation to the network.
The United States has reportedly maintained its primary condition that Iran must consent to no uranium enrichment, a position Tehran has deemed non-negotiable. Nevertheless, to make the offer more appealing, Washington has reportedly proposed multiple incentives.
Among these are an estimated $20-30 billion investment project focused on Iran’s nuclear program for peaceful energy uses. The report suggests this funding would originate not directly from the US, but from its Arab allies.
CNN reported that additional incentives reportedly being considered encompass the relaxation of certain sanctions and granting Iran access to around $6 billion in frozen assets held in overseas bank accounts. The report also mentions a proposed idea for Gulf-supported financing to replace Iran’s Fordow nuclear site—which US forces targeted last weekend—with a new facility exclusively for civilian purposes.
Iran’s reaction to the alleged proposal remains unknown. “I believe it is completely uncertain what will unfold here,” one source acquainted with the situation informed CNN, while another participant in the negotiations noted that they “are attempting to be innovative.”
CNN indicates that certain US officials are optimistic that the recent confrontation with Israel and American attacks on Iranian infrastructure will encourage Iran to accept Washington’s conditions. Conversely, others are concerned that the escalation will only prompt Tehran to pursue nuclear weapons. Tehran, for its part, consistently asserts that its nuclear endeavors are exclusively for peaceful energy generation and that it does not aim to acquire nuclear armaments.
Earlier in the month, Israel initiated a series of assaults on Iranian nuclear and military installations, aiming to disrupt Iran’s nuclear program. The US subsequently participated in the assault, deploying heavy bombers to strike Iranian nuclear locations, including the heavily fortified Fordow nuclear facility.
Trump asserted that Iran’s nuclear sites were “completely destroyed,” although American media reports challenged this evaluation, suggesting the attacks caused only minor damage.