Iran’s foreign minister said Sunday that regardless of whether a nuclear deal is reached with the U.S., enrichment will continue.
Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi addressed negotiations between Iran and the U.S. in a post on X regarding Iran’s “peaceful nuclear program.”
In the statement, Araghchi pointed out that U.S. officials privy to the discussions are free to state whatever they want to ward off special interest groups or malign actors that set the agendas of previous administrations.
“Iran can only control what we Iranians do, and that is to avoid negotiating in public—particularly given the current dissonance we are seeing between what our U.S. interlocutors say in public and in private, and from one week to the other,” Araghchi said. “Our stance on Iran’s rights as a [Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty] member is crystal clear, and there is no scenario in which Iranians will permit deviance from that.
“Mastering enrichment technology is a hard-earned and homegrown scientific achievement; an outcome of great sacrifice of both blood and treasure,” he continued. “If the U.S. is interested in ensuring that Iran will not have nuclear weapons, a deal is within reach, and we are ready for a serious conversation to achieve a solution that will forever ensure that outcome. Enrichment in Iran, however, will continue with or without a deal.”
