Nuclear Inspectors to Return to Iran Under U.S. Deal Framework

Vice President JD Vance said Monday that nuclear inspectors will be allowed back into Iran as part of a deal with the United States to end the monthslong war in the Middle East. “Yes, absolutely,” Vance told NBC News’ Tom Llamas in an interview. “In fact, one of the core parts of the agreement is that the [International Atomic Energy Agency] and the United States are going to help Iran destroy the highly enriched stockpile, and that’s something that’s spelled out very clearly” in the memorandum of understanding, or MOU, he added.

The text of the MOU will be released after a formal signing ceremony Friday in Switzerland, Vance said, confirming a timeline shared by President Donald Trump. A start date for the nuclear inspections could also be determined at the Friday ceremony. Vance said the expectation is that inspections will begin very quickly because broad agreement already exists on the issue.

“Again, if the Iranians comply, benefits will flow to them, and that’s what we hope to see,” he said. The Qataris and Pakistanis mediated the deal, Vance said. For the 60 days that the final deal is being negotiated, there will be toll-free access in and out of the Strait of Hormuz.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian stated in a Monday post on X that the deal’s framework is “an important step toward stopping the war and beginning negotiations,” while adding that a final agreement has yet to take shape. Vance was asked about recent skeptical comments from former President Barack Obama.

In an interview with ABC’s “Good Morning America,” Obama expressed doubt that any deal the Trump administration forges with Iran would be “different or a significant improvement” over a nuclear deal his administration negotiated with Iran in 2015.