WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that Iran has been asking whether American sanctions against the country could be lifted. “Iran has got very heavy US sanctions, and it makes it really hard for them to do what they’d like to be able to do. And I’m open to hearing that, and we’ll see what happens, but I would be open to it,” Trump told reporters at the White House.
Iran’s mission to the United Nations in New York did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Meanwhile, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei recently stated that cooperation with the US is impossible as long as Washington supports Israel, maintains military bases in the region, and interferes in Middle Eastern affairs.
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Trump, now serving his second term, restored a “maximum pressure” campaign against Tehran aimed at preventing the development of nuclear weapons. Earlier this year, in June, the US reportedly bombed Iranian nuclear sites as part of the campaign.
Prior to a 12-day conflict between Iran and Israel in June, the two countries held five rounds of nuclear talks. The negotiations have faced major obstacles, including disagreements over uranium enrichment levels on Iranian soil, which Western powers want reduced to zero to prevent weaponisation—a demand Iran has rejected.
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The president’s remarks signal a potential shift in US policy, though concrete steps to lift sanctions remain uncertain amid ongoing diplomatic and regional tensions.