Wendy Sherman, lead architect of 2015 Iran nuclear accord, discusses next steps for U.S. negotiations

Wendy Sherman, the U.S. lead negotiator for the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement, said Washington is still working through the practical and political questions of what a renewed deal effort would require as President-elect Donald Trump prepares to take office, according to an NPR interview published Monday. The conversation, with NPR reporter Ailsa Chang, focused on the “road ahead” for U.S. negotiators seeking a new agreement that would help end the Iran war, a reference to ongoing conflict and instability linked to Iran’s regional activities.

Sherman’s comments emphasized the work that falls on negotiators before any agreement can be finalized, including defining what compliance would mean, how inspectors would operate, and what tradeoffs both sides would accept. As the United States considers approaches associated with Trump’s broader Iran policy, Sherman said the core challenge is matching the diplomatic structure of an agreement to the security goals it is meant to achieve.

The interview also placed renewed diplomacy in the context of the original 2015 deal, which Sherman helped craft. The 2015 nuclear agreement is widely understood as a mechanism intended to constrain Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for relief from certain sanctions. In Monday’s conversation, Sherman described the need to think carefully about what changes would be necessary now, given developments since 2015 and the different risks Washington faces.

Asked what comes next for the United States, Sherman said negotiations require clear definitions of scope and timing, as well as an understanding of enforcement and verification. That includes ensuring that any commitments are specific enough to be monitored, and that consequences for noncompliance are not merely theoretical. Sherman’s remarks framed verification and enforceability as central to preventing the same problems that can arise when commitments are vague or hard to measure.

Sherman’s comments came as U.S. officials and partners continue to debate how to reduce Iran-related escalation while managing the costs and risks of further conflict. A negotiated framework, she indicated, is meant to address not just the nuclear issue, but also the broader security environment, including the regional fighting associated with Iran and its partners. That linkage, she suggested, affects what an agreement would need to cover and how difficult it may be to obtain agreement from all relevant parties.

NPR reported the interview without providing a detailed timeline for any specific U.S. proposal, but the conversation underscored that any next step would depend on what Washington can secure in talks and on how quickly the United States can bring negotiating partners toward shared terms. Sherman’s role as a senior figure in shaping the 2015 accord was presented as relevant experience for an effort that, if pursued, would aim to lower risk through a structured agreement rather than continued escalation.

For now, the NPR interview leaves the next phase of U.S. diplomacy largely at the level of process and requirements, rather than announcing a specific package of terms. The immediate question for U.S. policymakers and negotiators is how to design a new framework that can be monitored, enforced, and politically sustained, while still serving the stated goal of ending the Iran war and reducing security threats tied to Iran.