WASHINGTON, Feb. 26 (Xinhua) -- In the new round of U.S.-Iran nuclear talks in Geneva, the United States demanded a deal under which Tehran would dismantle its three main nuclear facilities and transfer all remaining enriched uranium to the United States, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday.
The White House is insisting that Iran shut down operations at its key sites in Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan and accept a deal with no expiration date, aimed at permanently blocking Iran's pathway to a nuclear weapon, said the report, citing U.S. officials.
The Donald Trump administration wants any agreement avoiding the sunset provisions that phased out restrictions under the 2015 nuclear deal, arguing the original pact was too weak, said the report, adding that the White House now faces pressure from Washington hawks not to accept terms that could be portrayed as a watered-down version of the earlier agreement.
The United States is offering only limited sanctions relief at the outset of any agreement, with the possibility of further easing if Iran complies over time, said the report.
Iran insists on its right to enrich uranium but is seeking to placate the United States by floating proposals including reducing enrichment to as low as 1.5 percent from up to 60 percent, pausing enrichment for a number of years, or processing it through an Arab-Iranian consortium based in Iran, according to the report.
The United States is insisting on zero enrichment, but its negotiating team could be open to allowing Iran to restart a nuclear reactor in Tehran that can process very low enrichment for medical purposes, said the report, citing U.S. officials.
For now, Iran is not enriching any uranium, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Wednesday, noting that Iran's two main enrichment sites were severely damaged by the Israeli and U.S. strikes last June.
Although the Geneva talks mainly focused on Tehran's nuclear capabilities, Washington also seeks to address Iran's ballistic missile program and support for regional proxy groups.
Trump said in his State of the Union address on Tuesday night that Iran is developing longer-range ballistic missiles that could soon reach the United States.
"I won't speculate how far away they are, but they are certainly trying to achieve intercontinental ballistic missiles," Rubio told reporters Wednesday. "And I would say that the Iranian insistence on not discussing ballistic missiles, it's a big, big problem. And I'll leave it at that."
U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff said at a private gathering on Tuesday that if a U.S.-Iran nuclear deal is reached, the White House would like to hold follow-up negotiations over Iran's missile program and support for proxy militias, Axios reported.
According to the U.S.-Iran nuclear deal reached under Barack Obama's presidency in 2015, most of the limitations on Iran's nuclear program gradually expired between eight and 25 years after signing. Iran also pledged to never pursue a nuclear weapon.
The U.S. administration has been deploying massive military forces in the Middle East. Trump warned on Monday that he would rather reach a deal with Iran, but if one is not reached, "it will be a very bad day" for the country, referring to a potential U.S. strike. Tehran has warned that any strike would trigger a large-scale retaliation. ■