Trump Says Iran Needs to Move Quickly on Nuclear Proposal
President Donald Trump on Friday said Iran had a US proposal about its nuclear program and knows it needs to move quickly to resolve a decades-long dispute, but Tehran denied receiving one yet.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi in a post on X said Tehran had not received a US proposal. "There is no scenario in which Iran abandons its hard-earned right to (uranium) enrichment for peaceful purposes..."
Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One after departing the United Arab Emirates: "They have a proposal. More importantly, they know they have to move quickly or something bad—something bad's going to happen," according to an audio recording of the remarks.
Araqchi said: "Iran nonetheless remains determined and straightforward: Respect our rights and terminate your sanctions, and we have a deal."
"We ALWAYS welcome dialogue based on mutual respect and ALWAYS reject any diktat," he said.
Earlier, an Iranian source close to the negotiating team, said Tehran has yet to receive the US proposal, "but Oman has got it and will hand it over to Tehran soon".
Trump has repeatedly threatened to unleash airstrikes targeting Iran's program if a deal isn't reached. Iranian officials increasingly warn that they could pursue a nuclear weapon with their stockpile of uranium enriched to near weapons-grade levels.
Meanwhile, Israel has threatened to strike Iran's nuclear facilities on their own if it feels threatened, further complicating tensions in the Middle East already spiked by the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip.
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