White House claims Iran deal victory, but details remain secret

WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House has sent talking points to supporters claiming major victories in the initial agreement with Iran. But the details of the deal remain unclear, and key negotiations on Iran's nuclear program have not yet happened. The White House document, obtained by The Associated Press, says Iran has agreed to never have a nuclear weapon. It also claims the Strait of Hormuz is open again and fighting in Lebanon has ended. However, the actual agreement between the U.S. and Iran is still secret. It is expected to be signed Friday in Switzerland. Even Republican allies in Congress and Israeli officials do not know what it says. This has created confusion and doubt. "You don't know what's true and what's not true," said Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va. President Donald Trump said Tuesday he will release the deal later. "I'll probably have a press conference and read it to you word by word," he told reporters at the G7 summit in France. **Nuclear weapons** The talking points say: "Iran will never have a nuclear weapon." Iran has long said it does not want nuclear weapons. But many critics doubt this. Iran has nearly 1,000 pounds of uranium enriched to 60% purity. That is a short step from the 90% needed for a weapon. The White House also compares its deal to the 2015 nuclear agreement made by President Barack Obama. Trump left that deal in his first term. The talking points claim the Obama deal was never signed. That is partly true but misleading. The foreign ministers did sign a copy, and the United Nations approved it. **Strait of Hormuz** The talking points say the Strait of Hormuz is open again. A fifth of the world's oil passed through this waterway before the war began. The U.S. and Israel started attacking Iran on Feb. 28. Before that, the strait was open to all ships. The deal would return the situation to where it was before the war started. The U.S. and Israel spent billions of dollars on the conflict. It could take weeks or months for normal shipping to return. Consumer prices in the U.S. only increased after the war began. Iran says it will keep control of the strait no matter what. **Sanctions relief** The talking points say Iran will not get U.S. taxpayer money. It will only get financial incentives if it meets certain goals. The document also criticizes the 2015 Obama deal. It says that deal cost U.S. taxpayers billions. In fact, the money given to Iran then came from frozen Iranian assets, not the U.S. treasury. The talking points mention "pallets of cash" sent to Iran after the 2015 deal. That money was for a canceled arms sale from decades ago. It was not part of the nuclear agreement. It was used to free American citizens held in Iran. **Lebanon fighting** The talking points say the agreement will end the Israel-Hezbollah conflict in Lebanon. But Hezbollah is not part of the talks. The Iranian-backed group has rejected any agreements made so far. Israeli officials also say they will not be bound by the U.S.-Iran deal. "We think that's unnecessary and unhelpful," Israeli Ambassador Yechiel Leiter told NPR. A senior U.S. official said Israel's withdrawal from Lebanon was not a condition of the agreement.