WASHINGTON (BN24) — The Trump administration has examined offering Iran as much as $30 billion in assistance to develop a civilian nuclear program if Tehran agrees to halt uranium enrichment, according to three people familiar with the internal discussions.
The tentative plan, which would also involve releasing billions of dollars in frozen Iranian assets, is among a range of options under consideration as officials debate how to curb Iran’s nuclear ambitions. The idea reflects a potentially dramatic shift for President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly condemned any sanctions relief for Iran since pulling the United States out of the Obama-era nuclear accord in 2018.
The discussions, first reported by CNN, included proposals for regional countries to help Tehran establish a peaceful nuclear energy industry while restricting its capacity to produce weapons-grade material.
It remained unclear whether the plan would move forward or whether U.S. and Iranian officials would enter any direct negotiations.
Trump publicly denied knowledge of the proposal on Friday night, calling it “just another HOAX put out by the Fake News.”
“I never heard of this ridiculous idea,” he wrote in a post on Truth Social.
The president’s remarks came only hours after he threatened to abandon any sanctions relief following inflammatory comments by Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who claimed victory over Israel and dismissed the significance of recent U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear sites.
“Why would the so-called ‘Supreme Leader,’ Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, of the war-torn Country of Iran, say so blatantly and foolishly that he won the War with Israel, when he knows his statement is a lie?” Trump wrote, adding that he had been exploring options for removing sanctions “which would have given a much better chance to Iran at a full, fast, and complete recovery.”
“The sanctions are BITING!” he continued. “But no, instead I get hit with a statement of anger, hatred, and disgust.”
In a televised speech Thursday, Khamenei declared Iran’s retaliation had delivered a “hand slap” to the United States and warned that such operations could be repeated.
Despite the fiery exchange, Trump on Friday said Tehran still appeared interested in meeting to discuss potential sanctions relief.
“They do want to meet me, and we’ll do that quickly. We’re going to do it quickly,” Trump told reporters during a White House meeting with the foreign ministers of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of Rwanda.
“Don’t you think we have sanctions on there that they can’t do anything?” he said. “Wouldn’t you think that they want to meet me? I mean, they’re not stupid people.”
