Iran said it would not stop uranium enrichment ahead of European talks

Iran does not plan to abandon its nuclear program, including uranium enrichment, despite the "serious" damage caused by US strikes on its facilities, the country's Foreign Minister Abbas Aragchi said before resuming talks with European states, UNN reports with reference to AFP.

Details

Enrichment is currently "stopped because, yes, the damage is serious and severe," Aragchi told Fox News on Monday.

"But, obviously, we cannot abandon enrichment, because it is the achievement of our own scientists," he continued, calling it a matter of "national pride."

US President Donald Trump responded to the comments on his Truth Social platform, saying that Washington would strike again "as needed."

"Iran holds European parties responsible for not fulfilling the agreement," said Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Bakai before Friday's talks in Istanbul on the future agreement.

On Tuesday, Iran will also hold a trilateral meeting with representatives of China and Russia to discuss the nuclear issue and possible sanctions.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry said that Beijing "will continue to play a constructive role, pushing interested parties to resume dialogue and negotiations and reach a solution that takes into account the legitimate interests of all parties."

In recent weeks, three European states have threatened to reinstate sanctions against Tehran, accusing it of violating its nuclear obligations.

Germany said that the talks in Istanbul would take place at the expert level, and the European trio (E3) would work "to the fullest" to find a sustainable and verifiable diplomatic solution.

"If a solution is not reached by the end of August... the return to the provisions (snapback) also remains an option for the E3," said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Martin Giese.

One of the points of the 2015 agreement allows for the possibility of renewing UN sanctions against Iran through the "snapback" mechanism in case of non-compliance with obligations.

The agreement expires in October, which creates tight deadlines.

Addition

On Friday, July 25, in Istanbul, Iran plans to meet with Great Britain, France, and Germany to discuss its nuclear program. Tehran accuses European states of disrupting the 2015 nuclear deal.

This meeting will be the first since Iran's 12-day war with Israel last month, during which the US struck Tehran's nuclear facilities.

The 2015 agreement, reached between Iran and the permanent members of the UN Security Council Great Britain, China, France, Russia, and the United States, as well as Germany, imposed restrictions on the Iranian nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of sanctions.

However, it fell apart in 2018, when the United States, during Trump's first term, unilaterally withdrew from the agreement and reimposed large-scale sanctions.

Although Europe promised further support, the mechanism designed to compensate for American sanctions was never implemented, which forced many Western companies to leave Iran and exacerbated its economic crisis, the publication writes.