Iran's Foreign Minister says no deal possible if US seeks end of uranium enrichment

Tehran, May 23 (IANS) Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi has said that there will be no nuclear agreement if the US seeks to cease Iran's uranium enrichment.

He made the remarks in a live interview broadcast on Thursday with the state-run IRIB TV ahead of the fifth round of indirect nuclear talks between Iranian and US delegations in Rome on Friday.

"Fundamental differences still exist between us. The US side does not believe in uranium enrichment in Iran. If this is their objective, there would be no agreement," Araghchi said while responding to US officials' recent demands that Tehran completely stop uranium enrichment on its soil.

"However, if they seek that Iran does not move toward nuclear weapons, this can be achieved. We do not seek nuclear weapons," he added.

Araghchi noted that the nuclear deal signed between Iran and several other countries in 2015 was no longer effective, "but it does not mean that the deal is dead," adding that the agreement, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, could be revived, Xinhua news agency reported.

However, Araghchi emphasised that Iran would not give up its nuclear program, including uranium enrichment.

Iran and the US have held four rounds of indirect talks on Tehran's nuclear programme and the lifting of US sanctions since April.

Recently, US officials have repeatedly demanded that Iran completely cease its uranium enrichment activities, a request that Tehran has firmly rejected, insisting the issue is "non-negotiable".

Earlier, the White House said US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu discussed "a potential deal with Iran, which the President believes is moving along in the right direction".

"As the President told me, and he's told all of you, this deal with Iran could end in two ways. It could end in a very positive diplomatic solution, or it could end in a very negative situation for Iran. So that's why these talks are taking place later this week," Leavitt said.

In 2018, during his first term, President Trump backed off the United States from the 2015 nuclear agreement reached between Iran and six world powers.

The Trump administration then pursued a "maximum pressure" campaign to compel Iran to renegotiate terms for "better" deal. However, that effort did not succeed in bringing Iran back to the negotiating table before the end of his first term.

Now, after reassuming office, Trump is desperately trying to forge a new agreement.

He issued warnings to Iran, saying that refusal to engage constructively could result in military consequences.

--IANS

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