Iran says will not halt nuclear enrichment ahead of European talks
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Iran has no plans to abandon its nuclear programme, including uranium enrichment, despite the "severe" damage caused by US strikes to its facilities, the country's foreign minister said ahead of renewed talks with European powers.
Iran is scheduled to meet Britain, France, and Germany in Istanbul on Friday, to discuss its nuclear programme, with Tehran accusing European powers of scuppering a landmark 2015 nuclear deal.
The meeting will be the first since Iran's 12-day war with Israel last month, during which the United States carried out strikes against Tehran's nuclear facilities.
For now, enrichment "is stopped because, yes, damages are serious and severe," Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told Fox News on Monday.
"But obviously we cannot give up enrichment because it is an achievement of our own scientists," he continued, calling it a source of "national pride."
Donald Trump responded to the comments on his platform Truth Social, saying Washington would carry out strikes again "if necessary."
The 2015 agreement, reached between Iran and UN Security Council permanent members Britain, China, France, Russia, and the US, plus Germany, imposed curbs on Iran's nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief.
However, it unravelled in 2018 when the US, during Trump's first term, unilaterally withdrew and reimposed sweeping sanctions.
Though Europe pledged continued support, a mechanism intended to offset US sanctions never effectively materialised, forcing many Western firms to exit Iran and deepening its economic crisis.
"Iran holds the European parties responsible for negligence in implementing the agreement," said foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei ahead of Friday's talks in Istanbul on the deal's future.
Iran will also host a trilateral meeting on Tuesday with Chinese and Russian representatives to discuss the nuclear issue and potential sanctions.
The Chinese foreign ministry said Beijing would "continue to play a constructive role in pushing relevant sides to restart dialogue and negotiations, and reach a solution that takes into account the legitimate concerns of all parties".
In recent weeks, the three European powers have threatened to reimpose international sanctions on Tehran, accusing it of breaching its nuclear commitments.
Germany said the Istanbul talks would be at the expert level, with the European trio, or E3, working "flat out" to find a sustainable and verifiable diplomatic solution.
"If no solution is reached by the end of August... the snapback also remains an option for the E3," said its foreign ministry spokesman, Martin Giese.
A clause in the 2015 agreement allows for UN sanctions on Iran to be reimposed through a "snapback" mechanism in the event of non-compliance.
However, the agreement expires in October, leaving a tight deadline.
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