Iran warns nuclear talks will fail if US pushes for zero enrichment

Deputy FM says enrichment is ‘national achievement’ that won’t be abandoned, despite US envoy Witkoff warning any such activity is a ‘red line.’ Nuclear talks between Iran and the United States “will lead nowhere” if Washington insists that Tehran drop its uranium enrichment activity to zero, state media quoted Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht-Ravanchi on Monday as saying.

US special envoy Steve Witkoff reiterated Washington’s stance on Sunday that any new deal between the US and Iran must include an agreement not to enrich uranium, a possible pathway to developing nuclear bombs. “Our position on enrichment is clear and we have repeatedly stated that it is a national achievement from which we will not back down,” Takht-Ravanchi said.

Western countries, including the United States and Israel, have long accused Iran of seeking to acquire nuclear weapons — an allegation Tehran has consistently denied, claiming that its program is for peaceful civilian purposes. However, Iran, which is sworn to Israel’s destruction, has ramped up its enrichment of uranium to 60 percent purity, which has no application beyond nuclear weapons, and has obstructed international inspectors from checking its nuclear facilities.  (Read more)