Iran, US divided over sanctions relief as nuclear talks head toward March round

Dubai: ​Iran and the United States have differing views over the scope and mechanism to ⁠lift sanctions on Tehran in exchange for ⁠curbs on its nuclear programme, ‌a senior Iranian ​official told Reuters on Sunday, adding that new talks were planned in early March.

The official said Tehran could ​seriously consider ⁠a combination of exporting part of its highly enriched uranium (HEU) stockpile, diluting the purity of its HEU and ⁠a ‌regional consortium for enriching uranium, but in return Iran's right ‌to "peacful nuclear enrichment" must be recognised.

"The ⁠negotiations continue and the possibility of reaching an interim agreement ‌exists," the official said. Iran's ‌Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said ‌on Friday that he expected to ‌have a draft counterproposal ready within days following nuclear talks with the United States ⁠this ⁠week, while US President Donald Trump said he was considering limited military strikes.

The senior official said Tehran will not hand over control of its oil and mineral resources but ​US companies can always participate as contractors ​in Iran’s ​oil and gas fields.