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Iran on right to enrich: Realities 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 unfamiliar with global goings-on and advising him to carefully study the case once again.

“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.

Speaking weeks after the US pullout from the nuclear agreement, Pompeo said on Monday that Washington would increase the financial pressure on Iran by imposing the “strongest sanctions in history” on the Islamic Republic if Tehran refuses to change the course of its foreign and domestic policy.

He laid out 12 tough conditions for any “new deal” with Tehran. The conditions included withdrawal of Iran’s military advisors from Syria, who have been helping the country’s legitimate government in its anti-terror fight against terrorist outfits that have been mostly aided and abetted by the US and its Western and regional allies.

The Leader of the Islamic Revolution Imam Seyyed Ali Khamenei said on Wednesday US enmity toward Iran is deep but noted that all American plots against the country have failed since the victory of the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

During a meeting with heads of the three branches of the Iranian government as well as officials in Tehran, Ayatollah Khamenei referred to what he called “the fundamental, deep and constant enmity” of the US toward the Islamic Republic and said Iran would definitely defeat the US if Iranian officials fulfill their duty.

China determined to safeguard Iran nuclear deal

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang told a regular news conference in Beijing on Friday that his country remains committed to the Iran nuclear deal and calls on all relevant parties to preserve and fully implement the accord.

He said China would continue to stick by the landmark deal, adding, “We believe that the practice over the past three years or so has fully proved that the JCPOA is effective. We believe it plays a positive role in upholding the international non-proliferation mechanism and in safeguarding peace and stability in the Middle East.”

The spokesperson called on all parties concerned to resolve each other’s concerns through dialogue and negotiations

“This is China’s stance on the JCPOA, and it remains unchanged,” he pointed out.

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