Iran deal very close, signing possible in coming days

Negotiators for the United States and Iran are close to the finish line of a deal aimed at ending their three-month war and it could be signed in the coming days, a senior U.S. official said on Friday.



A painstakingly negotiated agreement would include a commitment by Iran to neither develop nor procure nuclear weapons and would reopen the Strait of Hormuz to normal oil traffic and lift the U.S. blockade, the official told reporters.



It would only permit the release of frozen Iranian assets based on whether Iranian leaders meet the requirements laid out for them, the official said.



"If we see them honoring their end of the bargain, it's going to be very good for Iran, and if we see them not honoring their end of the bargain, then they're not going to get anything out of it," the official said.



Iran has offered a starkly different view of the draft proposal with few concessions made to the United States over the nuclear issue and control of the Strait of Hormuz.