Vance: Iran must first substantially reduce its uranium enrichment capacity, and the United States will not accept verbal promises.

US Vice President JD Vance stated that if Iran wishes to end the seven-month-long US-Iran war, it must first make "substantial" cuts to its uranium enrichment capacity to prove it has no intention of developing nuclear weapons, adding that the United States will not trade concrete actions for Iran’s verbal commitments. In an interview with Reuters, Vance said, “If you don’t want nuclear weapons, why do you need 60% enriched uranium?” He noted that the US remains willing to resolve the issue through diplomacy, but both sides must adhere to the “action-for-action” principle. The US’s core goals are to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons and to deter other Middle Eastern countries from pursuing nuclear capabilities as a result. Currently, the core divide in US-Iran negotiations centers on the sequence of ceasefire and nuclear issues: Iran demands that the US first implement a ceasefire, lift port blockades, unfreeze frozen assets, and adjust oil export sanctions before discussing nuclear matters; the US, in turn, requires Iran to first take concrete nuclear restraint measures and prevent the reconstruction of war-damaged enrichment facilities. Vance said the US and Iran have recently exchanged proposals via intermediaries such as Qatar, but the earlier preliminary arrangement to resume access to the Strait of Hormuz before discussing Iran’s nuclear program has not held. He also warned that if an agreement meeting US requirements is not reached, the US may expand military operations after the November midterm elections.