Western officials are confirming that there are talks underway among the current members of the UN Security Council about the language of a resolution which would lift economic sanctions against Iran.

There are presently eight UN resolutions against Iran, with four of them imposing economic sanctions, and officials say they intend to move quickly to lift them in an agreement between the P5+1 and Iran is reached.

That’s a surprise, as historically the UN Security Council has been very slow to lift sanctions. Indeed, neighboring Iraq is still under a portion of sanctions imposed on the Saddam Hussein government in the early 1990s, even though that government was ousted in a US military occupation in 2003.

Diplomats say the UN Security Council resolution could be an attempt to undercut the US Senate’s threats to sabotage any agreement reached, by making the lifting of sanctions legally binding under international law.

Officials are still saying, however, that the negotiations on the civilian nuclear deal are far from finished, and that the deal remains a “big if.” Officials are hoping to have a framework in place by month’s end, however.