Iran has reiterated its right to enrich uranium in response to the abrupt delay of Oman’s next round of nuclear negotiations with the United States.
In reference to Iran’s membership in the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated on social media on Saturday that “Iran has every right to possess the full nuclear fuel cycle.”
He continued, “Many NPT members enrich uranium while completely rejecting nuclear weapons,” underscoring Iran’s claim that its nuclear activities are of a civilian nature.
In response to the US’s demand that Iran stop all enrichment activities, Araghchi remarked, “Maximalist positioning and incendiary rhetoric accomplish nothing but eroding the chances of success.”
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio urged Iran to stop its enrichment efforts in an interview with Fox News on Thursday, claiming that “the only nations in the world that enrich uranium are those with nuclear weapons.” However, nations like Germany, Japan, and Brazil do so without having nuclear weapons.
A fourth round of indirect talks between Washington and Tehran, which was originally scheduled for Saturday, was postponed, according to the comments.
In the past, I have avoided making important negotiation-related arguments public.
I’ll say that repeating lies won’t alter fundamental truths. Iran has a right to control the entire nuclear fuel cycle because it was one of the NPT’s founding signatories. Additionally, there …
Oman, who is acting as a mediator, cited “logistical reasons” for the delay. A new date is still undetermined, according to an Iranian official who told the Reuters news agency that “the US approach” would dictate the timing.
The fallout comes in response to a recent wave of US sanctions against Iran’s alleged continued support for Yemen’s Houthi rebels and its oil sales. Washington was accused of sending “contradictory messages” that undermined diplomacy by Tehran in a response.
Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot earlier this week, who claimed Iran was “on the verge of acquiring nuclear weapons,” a claim Tehran refrained from calling as “simply absurd”.
Iran has consistently maintained that its nuclear program is in accordance with IAEA oversight, insisting it doesn’t seek a bomb.
Even as IAEA Chairman Rafael Grossi suggested on Wednesday that any enriched material in Iran could either be dissolved or exported if a deal was reached, Araghchi once more stated that Iran’s right to enrich was “non-negotiable.”
The diplomatic impasse comes as global powers consider whether or not meaningful progress can still be made in reviving the US’s first nuclear deal as president in 2018.
Source: Aljazeera
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