Trump says he will not ease sanctions on Iran as part of a deal

Trump says he will not ease sanctions on Iran as part of a deal Submitted by Yasmine El-Sabawi on Wed, 05/27/2026 - 19:38 As negotiations continue, Tehran has made clear its primary goal is financial relief US President Donald Trump talks to reporters, flanked by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, left, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, right, and Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick during a cabinet meeting at the White House, in Washington, DC, on 27 May 2026 (Evan Vucci/Reuters) Off US  President Donald Trump told reporters on Wednesday that easing sanctions on Iran is not under consideration in the current negotiations towards ending the war, reopening the Strait of Hormuz, and paring down Iran's nuclear capability. This comes as Iranian parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has repeatedly insisted that unlocking access to his country's money should be a confidence-building measure, if not a precondition, for talks with the US.  Both Ghalibaf and Iran’s central bank chief travelled to Qatar on Monday to discuss the release of some $6bn that has been held in the Gulf state - on Washington's orders - since September 2023, signalling a potential breakthrough. Iran is  desperately short  of cash and maintains it is owed up to $120bn of its own revenue that has been withheld by foreign governments and banking institutions, thanks to US sanctions steadily imposed on the country since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The  1996 Iran Sanctions Act  expanded sanctions to those doing business with Tehran and barred it from obtaining a nuclear weapon. From 2005 onwards, a slew of US sanctions have been imposed on individuals and companies alleged to...

Original source: Middle East Eye