TEHRAN, Nov 20 (NNN-IRNA) – Iran will not accept any agreement that would lead to zero uranium enrichment in the country, as it is considered a “betrayal,” Foreign Minister, Seyed Abbas Araghchi, said.
“We will in no way accept zero (uranium) enrichment, as the issue has turned into (a matter of) national glory and pride,” he said, in an interview with Iran’s Khabar Online news agency, published yesterday, adding, the country has paid numerous costs and made many sacrifices to retain its uranium enrichment.
Commenting on Iran’s interaction with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Araghchi said, the country has cooperated with the agency only in relation to those Iranian nuclear facilities that were not bombed by Israel and the United States in June.
Over the past months, the United States, joined by some European states, has called on Iran to cease uranium enrichment on its soil. Tehran has repeatedly rejected the demand, stressing its right to uranium enrichment is non-negotiable.
Iran has suspended cooperation with the IAEA since June, under a parliamentary law, citing the agency’s failure to condemn the Israeli and U.S. attacks on its nuclear sites, and concerns about the safety of its facilities and scientists.– NNN-IRNA
