President Trump's envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner traveled to the national lab in Oak Ridge, Tennessee on Thursday for consultations with a team of technical experts that could play a role in nuclear negotiations with Iran , Axios has learned.

• The U.S. and Iran are still at odds on several details of the MOU, according to U.S. officials and regional sources involved in the mediation.  
• The sources characterized the negotiations as in their final stretch, but it remains unclear whether agreement will ultimately be reached.  
• "This meeting in Oak Ridge doesn't mean that a deal is going to happen, but it is a sign that the negotiations are in a very serious phase and that there is a good chance to get it done and we want to be prepared," a U.S. official said.  
• The two U.S. officials said a team of roughly 100 experts was recently established to take part in the nuclear negotiations should a preliminary deal be reached. The Iran envoys made the trip to meet with members of that team and discuss preparations for the potential implementation of a nuclear deal.  

Talks

• Trump asked for two amendments to the text last Friday, and the Iranians said they would ask for tweaks of their own. The U.S. is waiting for the official Iranian response, but the sources said the gaps are relatively narrow.
• For example, Trump asked Tehran to agree that any final deal would include a 60-day deadline to conclude the down-blending of Iran's enriched uranium, but the Iranians want that deadline to be 90 days, according to two sources briefed on the talks.
• There is also disagreement over how much of Iran's frozen billions would be released, and when. The U.S. has said it would release funds after a final deal was reached and concrete steps were taken toward implementing it, a U.S. official said. The Iranians want some of the funds released immediately.