Tehran (TDI): Iran is set to reject a US proposal to end a decades-long nuclear dispute, an Iranian diplomat said on Monday, criticizing it as a “non-starter” that fails to address Tehran’s interests and leaves Washington’s stance on uranium enrichment unchanged.
According to the diplomat, who is closely aligned with Iran’s negotiating team but requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter, Tehran is preparing a formal response that is likely to be interpreted as a rejection of the US offer, Reuters reported.
The proposal was relayed to Iranian officials on Saturday by Oman’s Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr Albusaidi, who has been acting as an intermediary in backchannel discussions between Tehran and Washington.
Despite several rounds of diplomatic exchanges, including five meetings between Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi and President Donald Trump’s regional envoy, Steve Witkoff, key issues remain unresolved. Chief among them is Iran’s refusal to end its uranium enrichment activities, which Washington views as a potential route to weaponization.
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Iran insists its nuclear program is purely peaceful and denies Western accusations of harboring nuclear weapons ambitions.
“This proposal does not address the lifting of sanctions clearly, and it maintains the US position against enrichment on Iranian territory,” the diplomat said. “It offers little incentive for Iran to proceed.”
Tehran is demanding the immediate lifting of all US sanctions, especially those affecting its oil sector and financial system. However, the United States has proposed a gradual removal of restrictions, tied to specific steps taken by Iran to curb its nuclear activity.
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US President Donald Trump’s return to office in January has seen the revival of his “maximum pressure” policy, with fresh sanctions and repeated warnings that military options remain on the table if diplomacy fails.
The 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) required Iran to limit its nuclear activities in exchange for broad sanctions relief. In the aftermath of the US withdrawal, Iran has incrementally scaled back its compliance with the deal, stepping up enrichment and limiting international oversight.
Farkhund Yousafzai is an Associate Editor at The Diplomatic Insight.
