Iran Asserts Enrichment Right, Says Global Developments Foreign to Pompeo
Iran has slammed as unacceptable US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s latest remarks about the Islamic Republic’s right to uranium enrichment, saying he is a stranger to world events.
“For his information, it must be recalled that the Islamic Republic of Iran’s legal right to uranium enrichment has been established and its (enrichment) indigenous know-how exists in the country,” Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qassemi said on Saturday.
Qassemi welcomed Pompeo to the world of foreign policy and diplomacy, but said he “has engaged in … the very special issue [of Iran’s nuclear program] with some delay and without necessary and adequate information.”
The Iranian spokesperson added that Pompeo is not aware of international developments and realities and is rehashing the words of his defeated predecessors.
Qassemi emphasized that the US secretary of state’s remarks are inadmissible not only to Iran but all countries in the world.
In an interview with the US government-sponsored broadcaster Voice of America (VOA) on Friday, Pompeo claimed that it is not “appropriate for Iran to have the capacity to create fissile material, to enrich uranium or have a plutonium facility.”
He added, “If they want a peaceful nuclear energy program, fine, but they could import that material. And other countries do it; it works for many countries around the world.”
Pompeo’s remarks came after US President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from a multilateral nuclear agreement, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), signed between Iran and major powers in 2015.
Trump announced on May 8 that Washington was walking away from the nuclear agreement which was reached between Iran and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council – the US, Britain, France, Russia and China – plus Germany.
Trump also said he would reinstate US nuclear sanctions on Iran and impose “the highest level” of economic bans on the Islamic Republic.
Iran has said it would remain in the JCPOA for now, pending negotiations with the other signatories in the coming weeks before making a final decision on its future role in the agreement. Tehran wants the Europeans to give it clear-cut guarantees about fulfilling their obligations if it remains in the accord.
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