Video: Iran will not forfeit enrichment right — Iran President
Abdullateef Fowewe
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has said that Iran will not give up its right to enrich uranium.
The President while speaking at a monetary and foreign‑exchange policy summit in Tehran on Sunday urged the United States to accept that position under the Nuclear Non‑Proliferation Treaty (NPT), while offering written guarantees that Tehran is not pursuing nuclear weapons.
“Under the NPT, Iran has the right to enrich uranium for peaceful purposes, and we will not surrender that right,” Pezeshkian said.
He added that Iran had provided written assurances that it is not seeking nuclear weapons and said those guarantees should form part of any continuing negotiations.
The comments came days after a June 17 memorandum between Tehran and Washington brokered following a round of US and Israeli strikes on Iranian nuclear sites which included Iran’s agreement to dilute a portion of its enriched uranium in exchange for sanctions relief.
The memorandum temporarily eased military tensions but left key political differences unresolved.
President Pezeshkian framed Iran’s stance as consistent with international law, pointing to the NPT as the legal basis for peaceful enrichment.
“We are prepared to provide transparent, written assurances about our peaceful program,” he said, “but we will not accept the elimination of a right guaranteed by the NPT.”
Meanwhile, United States President Donald Trump and his administration have pressed for strict limits on Iran’s enrichment capabilities, the removal or destruction of highly enriched uranium stockpiles, and robust verification measures to prevent weaponisation.
Trump has repeatedly stressed that Iran must never obtain a nuclear weapon, and in recent weeks signaled some flexibility by discussing time‑limited suspensions rather than a permanent end to enrichment while insisting any agreement must include credible, enforceable safeguards.
