Iran said Monday that a memorandum of understanding with the U.S. does not include a 60-day grace period [1].
This denial comes as the memorandum expires today, creating a critical juncture in diplomatic relations between Tehran and Washington. The dispute over the timeline suggests a fundamental disagreement on the terms of the agreement and the potential for subsequent U.S. actions.
Ismail Baghaei, the spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, addressed the claims regarding the Islamabad memorandum on Monday. Baghaei said the Iranian Foreign Ministry denies the existence of any specific 60-day time limit in the memorandum signed with the American side [1].
Baghaei said that the memorandum of understanding signed with the U.S. does not stipulate a 60-day grace period. He said that Tehran is not a party that makes decisions under the pressure of deadlines or warnings [3].
The spokesperson said that the U.S. violated the terms of the memorandum only a few weeks after it was signed [4]. This accusation indicates that Iran views the agreement as having been compromised by the U.S. long before the official expiration date.
The memorandum's expiration on Monday marks the end of a formal framework for these specific understandings. While the U.S. has not issued a public rebuttal to Baghaei's statements today, the disagreement over the 60-day window [1] highlights the fragility of the diplomatic channel.
Baghaei's comments emphasize a broader Iranian policy of resisting external temporal pressures. By denying the existence of the grace period, Tehran is positioning itself as an actor that operates on its own terms rather than according to a U.S.-imposed schedule.
“"The memorandum of understanding that we signed with the American side does not stipulate a 60-day grace period."”
The disagreement over the 60-day window is significant because such clauses typically provide a buffer for diplomatic negotiations or a warning period before sanctions or other penalties are reinstated. By denying this clause exists and claiming the U.S. already violated the agreement, Iran is signaling that it does not recognize any legal or diplomatic 'countdown' that would grant the U.S. legitimacy in taking unilateral action following the memorandum's expiration.
