Iranian Foreign Minister, who is due to meet for a fifth round of indirect talks with U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff on Friday in Rome, issued a warning to the U.S. late Thursday night regarding the insistence that Iran must remove all of its nuclear enrichment capabilities.
Posting on X (formerly Twitter), Araghchi stated, “Figuring out the path to a deal is not rocket science: Zero enrichment = we DO have a deal, Zero enrichment = We do NOT have a deal.”
Araghchi’s post may indicate that Iran is ready to walk away from negotiations if the U.S. does not reverse its position on zero nuclear enrichment — a demand that has threatened to derail the talks over the past few weeks.
On Tuesday, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei stated that he did not believe further negotiations with the U.S. would yield results, adding that Iran would continue to enrich uranium “with or without a deal.”
Over the past month, the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has walked back from what was originally a willingness to accept Iran maintaining 3.67% enrichment — the minimum needed for civilian nuclear purposes — to now demanding that Iran dismantle its entire nuclear program. Trump has previously threatened that Iran would “blow up nicely with a deal or viciously without one.”
On Sunday, envoy Steve Witkoff, who will again participate in Friday’s talks, stated that Iran retaining any enrichment capability is a “red line” for Washington.
This comes amid reports that U.S. intelligence now believes the likelihood of Israel launching attacks on Iran’s nuclear facilities has increased significantly.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reiterated that Israel will not accept any deal in which Iran retains any nuclear capabilities.
Responding to those reports on Thursday, Araghchi also took to X, stating, “The Islamic Republic of Iran will not hesitate to forcefully respond to any transgression and will stop at nothing to protect its interests and people.”
Friday’s talks will be held in Rome, with Omani Foreign Minister Badr bin Hamad Al Busaidi acting as the mediator and conveying messages and responses between the two parties.