US official says US President Trump is prepared to ease sanctions on Iran and release its frozen assets in exchange for progress on the nuclear issue, reports Al Jazeera

Sanctions relief for Iran framed as a negotiation trade rather than a unilateral concession fits the established pattern of this dossier: Washington has historically used asset unfreezing and waiver mechanisms as the opening currency in nuclear talks, with substance coming later and often stalling on verification and sequencing disputes. The operative channel is crude: any path toward restored Iranian export volumes loosens the Atlantic basin balance, and in past episodes of this kind crude has traded the headline first and the paperwork later, since enforcement slippage tends to precede formal relief while formal relief is frequently partial or reversed. Frozen asset releases are mechanically distinct from sanctions easing, the former being a one-off transfer with limited market footprint, the latter the variable that matters for oil and for regional risk premia. Gold and the dollar have typically faded initial geopolitical de-escalation headlines of this sort unless followed by signed terms. Sourcing through a single regional outlet and an unnamed official warrants the usual caution on attribution. The tells are corroboration from counterparties, any mention of enrichment caps, and whether waiver language appears in actual authorisations rather than rhetoric.