U.S. Officials Say Iran Understanding Is Deliberately Vague Ahead of Signature

Before the deal is formally signed, American officials criticized the memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran, telling CNN overnight, between Tuesday and Wednesday, that it is "extremely vaguely worded." They said the wording was meant to create a more comfortable setting for negotiations on the full agreement, and one official called it a "political document" that lets Iran say what it needs to for internal politics.

According to the officials, the text should not be treated as the main story. "People should not cling too much to the memorandum of understanding," one said. "What is more important than the document itself is the understandings we have with each other." The same source said the U.S. wants the full text released to the public, while also giving Iran room to manage political developments at home.

The report said the memorandum does not spell out critical commitments Iran allegedly made to Washington through back channels. Those alleged commitments were said to have reassured Iranians enough to agree in the end, including U.S. involvement in destroying enriched uranium and coordination with the International Atomic Energy Agency. The published text also reportedly does not clearly address the freezing and possible release of Iranian assets.

American officials said they want to publish the full agreement before Friday's formal signing in Switzerland, but Iran asked them to wait until after the ceremony. The report also said Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is delaying publication, having approved the deal but still weighing whether to issue a statement before the signing. U.S. officials said releasing the full text could complicate that effort.