Saed News: A U.S. official said that the meeting between Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner in Oak Ridge does not guarantee that an agreement will be reached, but it is a sign that negotiations have entered a very serious stage.
According to SAEDNEWS, Axios reported that Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner traveled to the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee on Thursday to consult with a group of technical experts who may play a role in future nuclear negotiations with Iran.
The report states that the White House is seeking to reach a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Iran in order to end the conflict and begin detailed nuclear negotiations.
The U.S. administration also wants to have expert specialists prepared and available should those talks move forward. According to U.S. officials and regional sources involved in the mediation process, Washington and Tehran still disagree on several details of the proposed MOU.
The sources described the negotiations as being in the “final stage,” although it remains unclear whether a final agreement will ultimately be reached.
A U.S. official said:
“The Witkoff-Kushner meeting in Oak Ridge does not mean an agreement is certain, but it indicates that the negotiations have entered a very serious phase and that there is a good chance they could succeed. Therefore, we want to be prepared.”
Some of America’s leading experts in uranium processing and centrifuge technology are based at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the Y-12 National Security Complex.
Two U.S. officials said that a team of around 100 experts has recently been assembled to participate in nuclear negotiations if an initial agreement is achieved. U.S. envoys dealing with Iran also traveled to Oak Ridge to meet with members of this team and discuss preparations for implementing a potential nuclear agreement.
According to the report, Witkoff and Kushner reached an understanding with their Iranian counterparts last week regarding the terms of a 60-day memorandum aimed at extending the ceasefire, reopening the Strait of Hormuz, allowing Iran to sell oil, and beginning talks on Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium and future enrichment limits.
Former President Donald Trump reportedly requested two amendments to the draft memorandum, while Iranian officials also indicated they would seek changes. The United States is awaiting Iran’s formal response, though informed sources described the remaining disagreements as relatively minor.
One example concerns the deadline for completing the dilution of Iran’s enriched uranium. Trump reportedly wants a 60-day deadline, while Iran prefers 90 days.
There are also differences regarding the amount and timing of the release of billions of dollars in frozen Iranian assets.
A U.S. official said Washington’s position is that the funds would be released after a final agreement is reached and concrete implementation steps are taken. Iran, however, wants part of the funds released immediately.
If negotiations proceed to a second phase, the expert team that met with Witkoff and Kushner would be tasked with developing plans for handling Iran’s nuclear materials, further limiting its enrichment program, and establishing mechanisms to verify Iran’s compliance with any agreement.
Several of the nuclear experts who attended the meeting had previously accompanied Kushner and Witkoff to Oman for nuclear discussions with Iran before the conflict.
A U.S. official said:
“These are America’s top nuclear experts who know how to handle the technical aspects of an agreement with Iran.”
