Vice President JD Vance disclosed Monday that the memorandum of understanding recently reached between the United States and Iran is a surprisingly brief document, describing it as a broad framework rather than a detailed agreement and emphasizing that many of the most difficult issues remain unresolved.

During an interview with CNN, Vance said the memorandum is only about a page and a half in length and is intended to establish general principles while leaving the specifics to future negotiations.

“Yes, so the MOU is about a page and a half, so it is a very general document,” the vice president said.

Vance explained that substantial technical and logistical matters will have to be addressed in subsequent discussions, but said the agreement creates a mechanism through which Iran can receive benefits only by fulfilling its commitments.

“On a number of issues, we are going to have to figure this stuff out during the technical negotiation phase, but what the MOU does is set up a framework whereby the Iranians get the benefits of the bargain by meeting their obligations under the bargain,” he added.

According to Vance, the opening section of the memorandum focuses on regional stability and outlines obligations intended to reduce tensions throughout the Middle East. He said the provision requires Iran to move away from activities that contribute to instability in the region.

“What paragraph one of the agreement says is effectively that Iran commits itself, just as the United States commits itself, to regional peace and stability,” Vance said.

He further stated that a key component of that commitment involves ending support for terrorist groups and destabilizing actors.

“Part of that is that the Iranians have to stop funding violent terrorist organizations, they have to stop funding regional instability.”

Shortly after President Donald Trump announced the agreement Sunday evening, Iran’s semi-official Mehr news agency published what it claimed were the 14 core provisions of the understanding.

According to that report, the financial component of the deal would require the United States to release $12 billion in frozen Iranian assets before formal negotiations begin. The report further claimed that another $12 billion would become available during a 60-day period of final negotiations.

The published framework also asserted that U.S. sanctions on Iran’s oil and petrochemical industries would be suspended and that a naval blockade imposed on Iran would be lifted within 30 days.

Mehr reported that these measures would need to occur before any final treaty negotiations could proceed, making the release of funds, suspension of sanctions, and removal of the blockade prerequisites for further talks.

The Iranian account of the agreement was later challenged by a senior U.S. official, who dismissed the claims as misleading and denied that Iran would receive billions of dollars before meeting its obligations.

Speaking to Axios reporter Barak Ravid, the official rejected reports that Tehran would gain immediate and unrestricted access to $12 billion in frozen assets before the 60-day negotiating process begins, characterizing that portrayal as a distortion of the agreement.

“This is completely not true. This is a pay-for-performance deal and no frozen funds will be released without the Iranians implementing their commitments,” the official stated.

{Matzav.com}