Iran's Foreign Ministry stated that while most agreement articles had been settled, the US requested new demands. The ministry said senior Iranian authorities will review all clauses and announce the position in due time, and that reports on the time and place of signing are media speculation — the deal is not yet final.
Iran's Foreign Ministry pushed back Wednesday evening against the narrative of an imminent deal, claiming that the United States introduced new demands after most of the memorandum had reportedly been settled. The statement, issued at 23:28 Jerusalem time, explicitly denies that the agreement is final and describes reports of a signing time and place as media speculation.
The development is the latest in a thread The Zioneer has tracked since 20:44 Jerusalem, when Iran was reported to have submitted a final draft MOU to the US via Qatar. By 22:32, Iranian sources said Washington had withdrawn its additional demands, making approval likely. By 23:18, Fars News Agency assessed that Tehran was leaning toward approving the deal. The ministry's denial at 23:28 introduced a new phase: the claim that the US added fresh demands, contradicting the earlier source reports of a US withdrawal.
Corroboration has been uneven throughout the evening: the initial draft-submission report relied on American and regional sources; the claim of a US withdrawal came from Iranian sources without official confirmation; the ministry's Wednesday statement is an on-record position but still leaves the substantive dispute unattributed. The Zioneer has also reported, as background, that a Pakistani source told Al-Hadath that the sides remain far from signing, and that Israeli Ambassador Danon assessed that Washington may need to apply more force against Iran.
What remains open is fundamental: the precise content of the US demands that Iran now says were added, whether the earlier source reports of a US withdrawal were inaccurate or superseded, and the timeline for Iran's supreme authorities to announce a position.
6 developments
- DevelopingIran warns Pakistan of 'red lines' from start of talks, spokesman says
- StrongIran says it will not fulfill commitments while US 'evades' its own obligations
- StrongIran: We entered talks in good faith, awaiting final decision
- StrongIranian state media casts doubt on nuclear deal, warns against gradual agreement
Source and signal
- Internal intake