The CIA Director has expressed doubts about Iran’s willingness to make concessions on its nuclear programme
John Ratcliffe, Director of the US Central Intelligence Agency, has informed President Donald Trump and other senior administration officials that US intelligence raises serious doubts about Iran’s willingness to make nuclear concessions, which the United States is seeking as part of a future final agreement.
According to Axios sources, materials from several US intelligence agencies were discussed during a series of meetings at the White House. According to these sources, internal discussions among Iranian officials regarding a potential deal differed from the position Tehran had conveyed to mediators and US representatives.
According to one of the sources, the intelligence suggests a discrepancy between Iran’s intentions and its commitments under the future arrangements.
John Ratcliffe is not the only administration official to have expressed concern. During internal discussions, the issue of the deal was also raised by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defence Secretary Pete Hagset.
At the same time, Vice-President J.D. Vance, Special Envoy to the President Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner supported reaching an agreement with Tehran.
The White House emphasised that President Donald Trump is listening to all points of view, but makes the final decisions himself. An administration spokesperson also stated that Trump would only agree to a final deal that met Washington’s key demands and prevented Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.
According to Axios, the signed memorandum of understanding provides for the extension of the ceasefire and the launch of a 60-day negotiation process, which may be extended by mutual agreement.
The document also stipulates that Iran reaffirms its previous commitments not to develop nuclear weapons, and that the parties must agree on the future of stockpiles of enriched material and future aspects of the nuclear programme.
US officials note that over the next two to three weeks, Washington intends to assess how serious Tehran is about fulfilling potential nuclear commitments. In the absence of concrete steps, the negotiation process may be halted.
