Iran has strongly criticised a United States offer of up to $20 million for information about its nuclear programme, calling it “repugnant and regrettable”. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi wrote to the UN Secretary-General, the UN Security Council and the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the UN nuclear watchdog, asking them to condemn the announcement. The US military made the offer last Friday, saying money and “possible relocation” were available for information about the programme’s facilities, equipment and associated personnel.
What the US offer covers and why Iran objects
In his letter, Araghchi repeated Iran’s position that its nuclear programme is peaceful. He called on the UN and the IAEA to condemn the announcement “explicitly and unequivocally”. It is not yet clear how either body will respond to that request.
US President Donald Trump has repeatedly said Iran’s nuclear programme was effectively obliterated by brief US strikes on key nuclear facilities during the 12-day war between Iran and Israel in June 2025. Since that war, Iran has blocked IAEA inspectors from visiting the bombed sites at Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan. During the most intense phase of the current conflict, US-Israeli strikes hit Iranian nuclear sites again, but the scale of that damage remains unclear.
The nuclear question has been a source of tension for years. In 2018, during Trump’s first term, the US withdrew from an agreement reached under former President Barack Obama. That deal aimed to stop Iran developing nuclear weapons in return for sanctions relief.
Talks, the Strait of Hormuz and what comes next
Qatar and Pakistan have led diplomatic efforts to negotiate an end to the war. Tehran says Washington must accept a set of demands, including unfreezing Iranian assets and lifting sanctions, before Iran reopens the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has blockaded that waterway, a key route for energy shipments, since the conflict began.
Araghchi has said that talks over Iran’s nuclear programme would come at a later stage. The reward dispute therefore sits alongside a wider negotiation that has not yet produced a settlement.
Timeline: what has happened so far
- 2018: The US withdraws from the nuclear agreement reached under President Barack Obama.
- June 2025: A 12-day war between Iran and Israel sees brief US strikes on key Iranian nuclear facilities.
- February 28: US-Israeli strikes kill Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and war breaks out between Iran and the United States.
- Last week: The US military announces up to $20 million for information on Iran’s nuclear programme.
- Wednesday: Araghchi writes to the UN and the IAEA, calling the reward “repugnant and regrettable”.
Aasan alfaaz mein
Amreeka ne Iran ke nuclear programme ki maloomat dene walon ke liye 20 million dollar tak ka inaam rakha hai. Iran ne ise “repugnant” kaha hai aur UN aur IAEA se ise mazammat karne ka mutalba kiya hai. Jang khatam karne ke liye Qatar aur Pakistan baat cheet mein madad kar rahe hain. Aam logon par iska seedha asar abhi wazeh nahin hai, lekin tail ki qeemat aur rupay par nazar rakhni chahiye.
