 "This photo released on Nov. 5, 2019, by the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran shows centrifuge machines in the Natanz uranium enrichment facility in central Iran. AP File")
Iran has ruled out any compromise on its uranium enrichment programme ahead of a fresh round of high-level talks with the United States, with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi declaring the matter “non-negotiable” in response to renewed pressure from Washington.
“Iran’s enrichment is a real, accepted matter. We are ready to build confidence in response to possible concerns, but the issue of enrichment is non-negotiable,” Araghchi told reporters after a cabinet meeting in Tehran on Wednesday (April 16).
The remarks came days before Araghchi and US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff are due to meet again in Oman. Their encounter on Saturday follows last week’s rare direct talks — the most senior engagement between the two countries since President Donald Trump abandoned the 2015 nuclear agreement and reimposed sweeping sanctions in 2018. Trump, who returned to office in January, has doubled down on his “maximum pressure” strategy against Tehran.
While both sides described last weekend’s meeting as “constructive,” Witkoff escalated tensions on Tuesday by insisting that Iran must “stop and eliminate” its uranium enrichment as part of any future deal. His latest remarks went beyond earlier demands for Tehran to return to the 3.67 per cent enrichment limit outlined in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the landmark accord that Trump withdrew from seven years ago.
Araghchi accused the Trump administration of sending mixed signals. “We will find out the true opinions of the Americans during the negotiation session,” he said, criticising what he called the “contradictory and conflicting positions” emerging from Washington.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsTehran has maintained that its nuclear programme is for peaceful purposes and that enrichment remains a sovereign right. The foreign minister said Iran was prepared to explore a framework for a potential agreement, but only if the US adopted a “constructive” approach. “If we continue to hear contradictory and conflicting positions, we are going to have problems,” he warned.
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei also offered a cautious assessment of the diplomatic efforts. Speaking on Tuesday, he said the talks had made a promising start but warned that “the negotiations may or may not yield results.”
With inputs from agencies