Majid Takht-Ravanchi, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Political Affairs, stated in an interview with NBC News on Thursday that Iran has no intention of further retaliation against the United States for the attacks on its nuclear program but will continue uranium enrichment.
He said: “As long as no further aggressive actions are taken by the United States against us, we will not respond otherwise.”
Expressing regret over the Israeli regime’s attack on Iran at a time when Tehran was engaged in negotiations with Washington, Takht-Ravanchi remarked: “How can we trust the Americans? We want to know why they deceived us and carried out such a disastrous action against our people.”
The senior Iranian diplomat, noting that Tehran remains open to dialogue, said: “We are advocates of diplomacy and support dialogue.”
He added: “But the U.S. must convince us that it will not use military force during negotiations. This is a fundamental precondition for our leadership’s decision regarding the next round of talks.”
On the issue of enrichment, Takht-Ravanchi stated: “Our policy on enrichment has not changed. Iran has every right to carry out enrichment on its own soil. The only thing we must adhere to is not moving toward weaponization.”
He emphasized that Iran “is ready to discuss the scope, level, and capacity of its enrichment program with others.”
Responding to IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi’s claim that 400 kilograms of highly enriched uranium may have been relocated before the U.S. attacks, Takht-Ravanchi said: “I don’t know where those materials are, and I prefer not to say anything more.”
