Nuclear Chief: Iran Ties Uranium Rollback to Full Sanctions Removal

By Staff, Agencies

The head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran [AEOI], Mohammad Eslami, said any move to dilute uranium enriched to 60% would be contingent on the complete lifting of sanctions against the country.

Eslami made the remarks in Tehran on Monday while speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the inauguration of the "Electrical and Radiation Safety" Laboratory.

Addressing recent speculations regarding the potential removal of enriched uranium from Iranian soil, he dismissed the reports as "content pursued by various pressure elements" against Iran.

“Such a matter has fundamentally not been on the agenda,” Eslami clarified, adding that the proposal may have come “from a country or individual thinking it might help.”

Iran and the United States held new nuclear talks on Friday, with further discussions expected, following stalled negotiations before US-"Israeli" aggression in June.

Before the strikes, Iran had enriched uranium to 60%—above the 2015 nuclear deal limit—and held around 400 kilograms of highly enriched material, the fate of which has become a central focus of talks.

In May 2018, US President Donald Trump unilaterally and illegally withdrew the US from the nuclear deal and reimposed sanctions under the so-called “maximum pressure” campaign.

When asked about the possibility of Iran's nuclear file being referred to the UN Security Council, Eslami emphasized that the outcome depends entirely on the political will and "honesty" of the Western parties.

"It depends on how truthful they are and to what extent they wish to avoid repeating their past mistakes," he said.

"If they have the sincerity to set aside nuclear pretexts and stop creating problems for the Iranian people, the situation will change. However, their current trend of using every tool to disrupt the country's progress will never succeed; it has failed in the past and will fail in the future, whether in the Board of Governors or the Security Council," the AEOI chief added.

Eslami reiterated that Iran operates strictly within the framework of Safeguards and the law, noting that despite years of intensive inspections, there has not been a single report of non-compliance.

Iran’s nuclear chief criticized the International Atomic Energy Agency [IAEA] for remaining silent over military attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities, saying the Agency has an “unfulfilled duty” to condemn strikes on sites under its supervision.

“If we are under the Agency’s supervision and hold its credentials, the IAEA cannot remain silent,” Eslami said.

Iran proposed a plan at the IAEA General Conference to bar attacks on safeguarded nuclear facilities, but the United States formally blocked it, he said.

Regarding the current status of interactions, Eslami said cooperation with the IAEA continues at facilities not hit by US-"Israeli" strikes, noting that inspection teams have monitored these sites since the conflict with approval from the Supreme National Security Council. A few remaining locations will be inspected “in the coming days,” he added.