Tehran pitches commercial ties alongside nuclear framework
Iran is pushing for energy and mining contracts to anchor any nuclear agreement with the United States. The strategy is straightforward: give Washington a financial stake in keeping the deal alive.
"Common interests in the oil and gas fields, joint fields, mining investments, and even aircraft purchases are included in the negotiations," said Hamid Ghanbari, the foreign ministry's deputy director for economic diplomacy. He argued that American commercial benefits would make an agreement more durable.
The comments came February 15, days before a second round of indirect talks between Tehran and Washington.
Two rounds of talks, no breakthrough yet
US special envoy Steve Witkoff, Jared Kushner, and Navy Admiral Brad Cooper met with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in Muscat, Oman on February 6. Cooper heads US Central Command, making him the first top American military commander to attend nuclear negotiations with Iran.
Araghchi called the session "a good start" but acknowledged deep mistrust on both sides. Diplomats returned to their capitals for consultations, with follow-on talks planned.
Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht-Ravanchi told the BBC that Iran was ready to compromise. The ball, he said, was "in America's court to prove that they want to do a deal." Iran's atomic energy chief went further, floating the idea of diluting the country's most highly enriched uranium (currently at 60% purity, near weapons-grade) if all financial sanctions were lifted.
Tehran has drawn one red line: it will not accept zero enrichment on Iranian soil.
Sanctions tighten even as diplomats talk
Washington isn't waiting for a deal. The Treasury and State Department announced sanctions on 14 oil tankers operating in Iran's so-called shadow fleet, along with 15 trading firms and two business executives involved in sanctions evasion.
The US has also sent a second aircraft carrier to the region, keeping military pressure on Tehran while negotiations continue.
Oil prices fell roughly 3% last week after the IEA cut its demand growth forecast, but Iran risk remains a wild card. A deal that eventually lifts sanctions could put significant Iranian barrels back on a market the IEA already projects will be oversupplied by 3.7 million barrels per day.
Stakes for the oil market
US sanctions have constrained Iranian crude exports well below pre-sanctions levels, which topped 2.5 million barrels per day. A rollback would be bearish for prices, adding supply at a time when OPEC+ is itself debating whether to restart output increases in April.
Brent crude closed the week at $67.92 per barrel. WTI settled at $63.05.
The gap between Iran's enrichment red line and Washington's insistence on dismantling nuclear capability remains wide. But the energy deal sweetener is a new element that wasn't part of previous rounds, and traders will be watching closely to see if it changes the calculus.