Iran’s foreign minister said his country will never submit to the language of threat and intimidation after President Donald Trump ridiculed its continued pursuit of uranium enrichment following U.S. airstrikes on key nuclear sites in June.
“Our enrichment facilities are severely damaged, but our DETERMINATION IS NOT,” Abbas Araghchi said in a statement published on X, formerly Twitter.
Trump has described Tehran’s talk of renewing its nuclear enrichment program as “stupid.”
Newsweek has reached out to the White House for comment.
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Kevin Wolf/AP Photo
Why It Matters
Araghchi’s remarks come as Tehran has doubled down on uranium enrichment—despite U.S. and Israeli strikes on its nuclear facilities—reviving a central flash point in decades of U.S.-Iran tensions.
Iran is in discussions with the U.K., France and Germany—collectively known as the E3—hoping to avoid triggering a “snapback” mechanism that would reimpose U.N. sanctions lifted under the 2015 nuclear accord. The “snapback” of sanctions would isolate Iran further, risk collapse of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), and possibly accelerate regional instability.
What To Know
“No one in their right mind would abandon the fruits of tremendous investment in homegrown and peaceful technology which is saving lives—and simply because [bullying] foreigners demand it,” Araghchi said in a statement published on X.
Emphasizing that nuclear enrichment is vital for Iran, Araghchi said that over a million Iranians rely on medical radioisotopes produced by the Tehran Research Reactor—which requires 20 percent enriched uranium originally supplied by the United States.
Regarding the U.S. and its allies’ concerns about Iran’s nuclear enrichment program being diverted from the peaceful purposes Iran claims to pursue, Araghchi said that only “a negotiated solution” may succeed.
On June 22, U.S. strikes hit Iran’s nuclear sites after a 12-day Israeli offensive. Iran retaliated with missile attacks on the American air base at Al-Udeid in Qatar, calling it a direct response to U.S. aggression.
What People Are Saying
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi wrote on X: “All should know that we Iranians have NOT BOUGHT our PEACEFUL nuclear program; we have BUILT IT WITH BLOOD, SWEAT, AND TEARS. The technology and know-how that our FORMIDABLE human resources have developed CANNOT be destroyed by bombings.”
President Donald Trump said while in Scotland Sunday: “They still talk about enrichment. Who would do that? You just come out of something that’s so bad, and they talk about, we want to continue enrichment. How stupid can you be to say that?”
What Happens Next
Araghchi is warning that if hostile actions against it continue, Iran will retaliate more forcefully and openly than before.
