60-Day Free Passage and Uranium Stays in Iran: "U.S. Surrender"

[Anchor]

Let’s take a closer look at the final draft of the memorandum of understanding (MOU) on ending the war, which was released by the U.S. today (June 18). There has been a battle of truth between the U.S. and Iran as their claims have been sharply divided. Looking at the released text, it is being evaluated as a victory for Iran and a surrender by the U.S. regarding both the Strait of Hormuz and enriched uranium issues.

Gwak Sang-eun analyzes why this is the case.

[Reporter]

The first thing that stands out in the final version of the MOU, which has been signed by the presidents of both countries, is Article 5, the clause on navigation rights in the Strait of Hormuz.

In addition to the principled language on the normalization of the strait in the draft, the final version includes a new provision stating that Iran will do its best to guarantee free passage without fees for 60 days.

Furthermore, it even includes a phrase about "dialogue with Oman" to establish future management service regulations for the Strait of Hormuz.

Ghalibaf, the Iranian lead negotiator, has publicly declared that they will naturally begin charging service fees after the 60 days are up.

There has also been a change in the clause regarding the disposal of enriched uranium, with the addition of a phrase stating that it will be diluted on-site under the supervision of the IAEA at a minimum.

Initially, President Trump had stated that he would bring the nuclear material to the U.S., but in the final version, he has effectively accepted its disposal within Iran.

Now, he is changing his tune, claiming that the highly enriched uranium is not actually of much value.

In addition to the four articles in the draft, Iran added the end of the war on all fronts, including Lebanon, as a prerequisite for the final negotiation. Through this, Iran has secured leverage to force the U.S. to pressure Israel.

The issue of Iran's ballistic missiles, which had been a concern for neighboring countries, was left out of the negotiation agenda entirely.

Nevertheless, President Trump maintains that there is no problem.

[Donald Trump/U.S. President: We will discuss issues like conventional ballistic missiles. But other countries have missiles too, so Iran should have some as well. They need to have missiles, too.]

On the other hand, Iran has opened up its oil export routes, which had been blocked by U.S. and Western sanctions, and has achieved most of its core demands by codifying the "unfreezing" of assets on the condition of implementing the MOU.

As questions are raised about what this war, which held the global economy hostage and resulted in numerous civilian and U.S. military casualties, was actually for, sharp criticism is pouring out even from the U.S. conservative camp, calling it "effectively a U.S. surrender."

Reported by Gwak Sang-eun | Video by Lee Seung-yeol | Graphics by Kim Ye-ji
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.