US weighs sanctions waiver for Najaf pilgrimage flights, person says
A US official says Washington needs proof Iran is serious about negotiations, not just seeking an exit from its current troubles
Published
The US is considering a sanctions waiver for flights between Iran and Najaf, the Iraqi holy city, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter. A US official says Washington needs guarantees that Tehran is serious about negotiating and not merely trying to escape its current difficulties.
The possible waiver comes amid a wider set of contacts between the two sides. The White House has confirmed an offer of sanctions relief tied to nuclear progress, including the unfreezing of Iranian assets in exchange for concrete steps by Tehran. Iran's foreign minister, Araghchi, met mediators in New York on Monday, though US representatives were not at the table. Iran's government has said, through Tasnim, that the meeting was with mediators only, not with US officials directly. Separate US-Iran talks are expected Monday or Tuesday, centered on a revised seven-day Iranian proposal discussed at the United Nations General Assembly.
Officials in Tehran say a deal with Washington before the US midterm elections is unlikely, even as both governments describe these separate contacts continuing.
A narrow waiver tied to a religious pilgrimage route is a small gesture, not a policy shift, and the explicit US demand for proof of serious intent points to the same wait-and-see approach seen in earlier offers. Little has changed for oil's risk premium, since the underlying gap between Washington's conditions and Tehran's refusal to negotiate remains in place.