Trump Says Iran Agreed to Weapons Inspections as Tehran Denies New Nuclear Commitments

by Emmitt Barry, Worthy News Washington D.C. Bureau Chief

(Worthy News) – President Donald Trump said Monday that Iran will face “major weapons inspections” under a developing peace framework with the United States, even as Tehran publicly denied making any new nuclear commitments during high-level talks in Switzerland.

The sharp contrast between Washington’s claims and Tehran’s denials underscored the fragile nature of the negotiations, which are aimed at ending a nearly four-month conflict that has drawn in Israel, Hezbollah, Iran, and the United States.

In a Truth Social post, Trump said Iran had agreed to “major weapons inspections” to ensure what he called “Nuclear Honesty.” Later, during an Oval Office event focused on quantum computing, the president warned that the United States remained prepared to act militarily if Tehran violated the emerging agreement.

“If Iran doesn’t live up to their agreement or doesn’t behave, I will do what I have to do,” Trump said. “As long as Iran shows respect toward the United States, there will be no problems between the two countries.”

Vice President J.D. Vance, who led the U.S. delegation during the first round of talks at the Lake Lucerne Summit in Switzerland, said Iran had agreed to invite International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors back into the country.

“The Iranians have agreed to invite IAEA inspectors back into their country,” Vance told reporters before departing Switzerland. He called the move “a major milestone for the American people” and “the first step in permanently denuclearizing or permanently ending a nuclear weapons program in Iran.”

Vance said the talks had laid the groundwork for a broader peace arrangement.

“The final deal is the house,” he said. “We haven’t built the house, but we’ve laid a successful foundation.”

Iran Denies New Nuclear Agreement

Iran quickly disputed the American account.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei told state media that Tehran had not negotiated over its nuclear program and had accepted no new commitments during the weekend talks. He said Iran’s cooperation with the IAEA would continue only “in accordance with current procedures” and subject to approval from Iran’s parliament and Supreme National Security Council.

Baghaei said there had been only a “brief discussion” of the nuclear issue and insisted that detailed negotiations had not begun.

The dispute is significant because Iran expelled IAEA inspectors in June 2025 following Operation Midnight Hammer, the U.S.-Israeli bombing campaign against several of Tehran’s largest uranium enrichment sites. Since then, the IAEA has accused Iran of obstructing inspections and failing to fully account for its stockpile of highly enriched uranium.

For critics of the negotiations, Tehran’s refusal to publicly confirm the inspection commitment has reinforced longstanding concerns that the regime may be using diplomacy to buy time, secure sanctions relief, and preserve strategic ambiguity over its nuclear program.

Sanctions Relief Draws Criticism

The talks have already produced a major economic concession from Washington.

The Treasury Department issued a 60-day license allowing Iran to sell previously sanctioned oil, citing Iran’s apparent willingness to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and cooperate with nuclear inspectors. The temporary waiver could give Tehran access to billions of dollars in oil revenue while negotiations continue.

Iranian oil has been heavily sanctioned by Western governments for years, forcing Tehran to sell at steep discounts, largely to China, through a shadow fleet of tankers. China reportedly buys the overwhelming majority of Iran’s sanctioned crude.

The U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding calls for Washington to move quickly to issue waivers for Iranian crude exports until a final agreement is reached. Supporters say the move could help stabilize global oil prices after Tehran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil passes.

But opponents in the United States and Israel say the measure rewards Iran for closing a strategic waterway and weakens U.S. leverage at a critical moment.

Vance rejected concerns that Iran would use the funds to rebuild its military or finance terror networks, saying the U.S. had proposed that unfrozen Iranian assets be used to buy American agricultural products, including wheat and soybeans.

Trump hailed that provision as a victory for American farmers.

“Money that is being unfrozen is going to be used to buy food and the food is going to be bought exclusively through the United States from our farmers,” Trump said.

Iranian state-affiliated media, however, denied that such a proposal had been discussed.

Lebanon Remains a Flashpoint

The negotiations also focused heavily on Lebanon, where Israel and Hezbollah entered a ceasefire Friday after months of fighting.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said progress had been made on several major issues, including Lebanon, oil exports, frozen Iranian assets, and a proposed $300 billion reconstruction fund.

Pakistan and Qatar, which are mediating the talks, announced the creation of executive mechanisms to supervise the memorandum’s implementation. One of those mechanisms includes a “de-confliction cell” to oversee the Lebanon ceasefire, with representatives from Lebanon, the United States, and Iran.

Still, Israel has made clear that it does not intend to fully withdraw from southern Lebanon while Hezbollah remains a threat.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said Israel has no desire to occupy Lebanese territory but will not abandon a security zone it says is needed to protect Israeli civilians from Hezbollah attacks.

“We don’t have territorial ambitions in Lebanon, but we will not withdraw from the security zone and expose our citizens to Hezbollah’s attacks and possible invasion,” Sa’ar wrote on X.

The ceasefire has largely held, giving U.S. and Iranian negotiators a narrow window for further progress. But Israel’s continued security posture in southern Lebanon could become one of the most difficult obstacles to a final agreement.

A Fragile Deal Facing Deep Distrust

The first round of talks ended with both sides claiming progress, but not agreement on the same terms.

Washington says Iran has accepted a path toward renewed nuclear inspections and broader de-escalation. Tehran says it made no new nuclear commitments and will proceed only within its own legal and political framework.

That gap leaves the developing peace process on uncertain ground.

For the Trump administration, the negotiations represent an effort to prevent another round of war while forcing Iran back under international scrutiny. For Israel, the central question remains whether any agreement will truly dismantle Iran’s nuclear threat and restrain its regional proxies.

For many in the West and across the Middle East, the issue is not merely diplomatic language, but trust. Iran’s long record of using Hezbollah, Hamas, and other proxy forces to project power has left deep skepticism over whether the regime intends peace or merely a pause.

The coming days will test whether the Switzerland talks marked the beginning of a durable settlement — or another temporary truce in a conflict shaped by decades of hostility, ideology, and regional confrontation.

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