Iran defies Trump on uranium enrichment

Tehran has the legal right to pursue a peaceful nuclear program, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said

Iran will not give up its uranium enrichment capacity even under threat of war, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said. US President Donald Trump has demanded that Iran agree to a “zero enrichment” policy.

Araghchi made the remarks at the National Congress on the Islamic Republic’s foreign policy in Tehran on Sunday, calling enrichment a legal right rooted in sovereignty and national dignity.

“Why have we insisted so strongly on enrichment and continue to do so, and why are we not willing to give it up, even if war is imposed on us? Because no one has the right to tell us what we should have and what we should not have,” he said.

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Araghchi added, however, that Iran is open to addressing concerns over its nuclear program and building trust on the matter. “If there are any questions or ambiguities regarding the peaceful objectives of Iran’s nuclear program, we will respond and remove ambiguities, and the only way is through diplomacy.”

He went on to say that the US and Israeli strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities last year failed to provide the desired results.

“Knowledge cannot be bombed away. Bombing can destroy buildings, but technology cannot be destroyed,” Araghchi said, adding that this was the message he relayed to the US during recent indirect talks in Oman.

Araghchi previously described the negotiations as a “good beginning,” stressing that they were “exclusively nuclear,” though US officials said they also wanted to discuss Iran’s ballistic missiles and support for its regional allies.

The Trump administration has long insisted that Iran must accept a “zero enrichment” policy, and has on numerous occasions suggested that Washington could resort to a military option if diplomacy fails.

Araghchi’s remarks come amid rising tensions between Tehran and Washington, with the US recently deploying additional naval and air assets to the region. Trump has also promised support for violent protests in Iran triggered by economic grievances; Tehran has said it will not bow to pressure.