In the days before the latest flare-ups of violence in the Middle East, President Trump’s aides were negotiating with Tehran on four major elements of a nuclear agreement that U.S. officials contend would grind the program to a halt for 15 years or so.
The negotiations, according to U.S. officials and diplomats who have been briefed on the confidential talks, have gone considerably beyond discussion about reopening the Strait of Hormuz, which the Iranians have all but shut down for 101 days.
The result is what American officials describe as the hazy outlines of an accord — assuming the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps and hard-line Iranian politicians do not overrule Iran’s chief negotiator, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, or torpedo the much more detailed talks that the United States has proposed to hold in Switzerland this summer.
It is not clear whether talks will be set back by the latest developments, including Mr. Trump’s statement on Tuesday that Iran had shot down an American helicopter near the Strait of Hormuz and that the United States would have to respond.
According to the officials and diplomats, here are the four major points of negotiation on a nuclear agreement between the United States and Iran:
1. A lengthy suspension of uranium enrichment
The United States has demanded for months that Iran agree to conduct no uranium enrichment for at least 20 years. The Iranians have countered by offering a 10-year halt, but American officials believe they will settle for 15 years.
Earlier in the conflict, Mr. Trump said a 20-year ban would be insufficient, but on Air Force One returning from China on May 15 he told reporters that he would accept it if it was a “real 20 years.” It is not clear whether he would accept 15 years.