Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said US negotiators have not requested Tehran end its nuclear enrichment program, contradicting statements from American officials.
– “We have not offered any suspension, and the US side has not asked for zero enrichment,” Araghchi said in an interview.
– The top diplomat also said the next step in talks between the two sides is for him to present a draft of a possible deal to Washington “in the next two, three days.”
– “What we are now talking about is how to make sure that Iran’s nuclear program, including enrichment, is peaceful and would remain peaceful forever,” Araghchi said.
– His comments stand in contrast to information relayed by high-ranking US officials including President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly said Iran must not be allowed to enrich uranium at any level.
– Araghchi’s remarks come after Washington and Tehran concluded on Tuesday a second round of Oman-mediated talks in the Swiss city of Geneva.
– The two foes held an initial round of discussions on February 6 in Oman, the first since previous talks collapsed during the 12-day Iran-Israel war last June in which the US took part by striking Iranian nuclear facilities.
– On Thursday, Trump suggested the US would attack Iran again if Tehran does not make a deal with Washington within 10 days, which he later extended to 15.
– Washington has repeatedly called for zero enrichment but has also sought to address Iran’s ballistic missile program and its support for militant groups in the region – issues which Israel has pushed to include in the talks.
– Western countries accuse the Islamic Republic of seeking to acquire nuclear weapons.
– Tehran denies having such military ambitions but insists on its right to the technology for civilian purposes.
– Trump, who has ratcheted up pressure on Iran to reach an agreement, has deployed a significant naval force to the region, which he has described as an “armada.”
– After sending the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and escort battleships to the Gulf in January, he ordered a second carrier, the Gerald Ford, to depart for the Middle East.
– Meanwhile, Iranian naval forces this week conducted military drills in the Gulf and around the strategic Strait of Hormuz in their own show of force.