Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Sunday ruled out Tehran ever giving up uranium enrichment in its negotiations with Washington.
– Araghchi told a forum in Tehran, that Tehran had little trust in Washington and even doubted that the US side was taking renewed negotiations seriously.
– “Why do we insist so much on enrichment and refuse to give it up, even if a war is imposed on us? Because no one has the right to dictate our behavior,” Araghchi
– “Their military deployment in the region does not scare us,” he said, referring to the arrival of an aircraft carrier, the USS Abraham Lincoln, in the Arabian Sea.
– The United States and Iran reopened negotiations on Friday, for the first time in years, in Oman.
– Iran is seeking to have US economic sanctions on the country lifted, in exchange for what Araghchi said at the forum could be “a series of confidence-building measures concerning the nuclear program.”
– Western countries and Israel, thought to be the Middle East’s only country with nuclear weapons, say Iran is seeking to acquire a nuclear bomb, which the Islamic republic denies.
– “They fear our atomic bomb, while we are not looking for one. Our atomic bomb is the power to say ‘no’ to the great powers,” Araghchi said.
– Araghchi’s comments came after US lead negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner visited the aircraft carrier on Saturday, signaling the persistent threat of US military action against Iran.
– The US military’s Central Command (CENTCOM) said the two top officials visited the nuclear-powered vessel.
– In a social media post, Witkoff said the aircraft carrier and its strike group was “keeping us safe and upholding President Trump’s message of peace through strength.”
– The threat of war continues to hover over the negotiations, even as Trump called the talks “very good” and Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian posted on social media that they “constitute a step forward.”
– Following Friday’s first round in Oman, Trump signed an executive order calling for the “imposition of tariffs” on countries still doing business with Iran despite US sanctions.
– The United States also announced new sanctions against numerous shipping entities and vessels, aimed at curbing Iran’s oil exports.
– At the Tehran forum Sunday, Araghchi called into question the United States’ commitment to negotiations.
– “The continuation of certain sanctions and military actions raise doubts about the seriousness and readiness of the other side to conduct genuine negotiations,” he said.
– “We are monitoring the situation closely, assessing all the signals and will decide on the continuation of the negotiations.”