DUBAI, UAE – Iran’s top leader rejected initial bids in talks in Vienna on Wednesday to save Tehran’s ragged nuclear deal as “not worth looking at”, trying to pressure world powers after attack on main site nuclear enrichment.
The comments of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has the final say on all state issues in the Islamic Republic, came after a day when the Iranian president put similar pressure on the agreement. Meanwhile, European powers have warned Tehran that its actions are “particularly unfortunate” and “dangerous”.
Talks have already been thrown into disarray by a weekend attack on Iran’s main nuclear enrichment site Natanz, suspected of being carried out by Israel. Tehran has responded by announcing that it will enrich uranium by up to 60% – higher than it has been so far, but still lower than 90% weapons levels.
“The offerings they offer are usually arrogant and humiliating (and) not worth looking at,” Khamenei, 81, said in an address marking the first day of Muslim’s holy month of fasting in Ramadan. Iran.
He also criticized the US and warned that time could run out.
“The talks should not become discussions of attrition,” Khamenei said. “It should not be in a way that the parties drag and prolong the talks. This is harmful to the country. ”
Speaking to his cabinet, a passionate Iranian president, Hassan Rouhani, said that first-generation IR-1 centrifuges that were damaged in Sunday’s attack would be replaced by advanced IR-6 centrifuges that enrich uranium much faster.
“You wanted to leave us empty-handed during the talks, but our hands are full,” Rouhani said.
Rouhani added: “Enriching 60% is a response to your wickedness. … I cut both your hands, one with IR-6 centrifuge and the other with 60%. ”
Rouhani also accused Israel of being behind the Natanz attack and threatened to retaliate.
In Jerusalem, at the commemoration of Memorial Day, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared to refer to Iran.
“We must never remain apathetic to the threats of war and extermination of those who try to eliminate us,” he said. Israel did not claim the attack, although it rarely does so in its ongoing war against Tehran.
The Vienna talks are aimed at finding a way for the United States to reintroduce the Tehran nuclear deal with world powers and for Iran to meet its limits again. The deal, from which former President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the United States in 2018, prevented Iran from storing enough rich uranium to pursue a nuclear weapon in exchange for lifting economic sanctions.
Late Wednesday, the European Union said official talks would resume in Vienna on Thursday.
Rouhani, in his comments, insisted on Wednesday that Iran still hopes that the negotiations in Vienna will lead to a negotiated settlement of its program – and to the accompanying lifting of sanctions. Khamenei also said he believes in his negotiators, but maintained pressure on the West in his remarks on Wednesday night.
“We have to do what we say first and we are sure it has been done, then we will do what we are asked to do,” he said.
France, Germany and the United Kingdom, all parties to the nuclear deal, issued a joint statement a few hours earlier expressing “grave concern” over Iran’s decision to increase enrichment.
“This is a serious development, because the production of highly enriched uranium is an important step in the production of a nuclear weapon,” the countries said. “Iran does not have a credible civilian need for enrichment at this level.”
China and Russia also participated in the agreement.
Saudi Arabia, a regional rival of Iran, issued a similar statement, saying that enrichment at that level “cannot be considered a program for peaceful purposes.” He called on Iran to “avoid escalation.”
Iran insists its nuclear program is peaceful, although the West and the International Atomic Energy Agency say Tehran has organized a military nuclear program until the end of 2003. An annual US intelligence report released Tuesday maintains the US assessment that “Iran does not is currently undertaking the key activities for the development of nuclear weapons that we believe would be necessary to produce a nuclear device. ”
Iran has previously said it could use up to 60% enriched uranium for nuclear-powered ships. However, the Islamic Republic does not currently have such ships in its navy.
Iran has enriched itself by up to 20% – even that was a short technical step to arms levels. The agreement limited Iran’s enrichment to 3.76%
Iran’s IAEA envoy Kazem Gharibabadi has posted a letter online to IAEA Director-General Rafael Grossi warning against “any adventurism of the Israeli (regime)” targeting Iranian nuclear sites.
“The latest cowardly act of nuclear terrorism will only strengthen our determination to move forward and replace all (damaged) centrifuges with even more advanced and sophisticated machines,” Gharibabadi wrote.
IAEA inspectors visited Natanz on Wednesday on their first sabotage trip and found Iran preparing an above-ground area for superior enrichment, the agency said.
Iran has “almost completed preparations to start production (uranium gas) enriched by up to 60%,” the IAEA said in a subsequent statement. “Iran has informed the agency that the necessary pipelines are being completed and that the supply of (uranium gas) enriched up to 5% in an IR-6 centrifuge cascade will begin shortly thereafter.”
The weekend attack on Natanz was initially described only as a power outage that supplies above-ground workshops and underground enrichment halls – but later Iranian officials began calling the attack.
Alireza Zakani, the harsh head of the Iranian parliament’s research center, referred to “several thousand damaged and destroyed centrifuges” in a state TV interview. However, no other official provided that figure and no images of the consequences were published.
Satellite photos from Planet Labs Inc. from Natanz, made on Wednesday and analyzed by The Associated Press showed no apparent above-ground damage to the installation.
___
Associated Press writers Nasser Karimi from Tehran, Iran; Ilan Ben Zion in Jerusalem; David Rising in Berlin and Malak Harb in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, contributed to this report.