There are clear divisions between the U.S. and Iran ahead of high-stakes nuclear negotiations this weekend.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told reporters Wednesday that his country must be allowed to continue enriching uranium — a stance that seems to put Tehran at odds with new positions laid out by the Trump administration a day earlier.
“Iran’s enrichment is a real, accepted matter. We are ready to build confidence in response to possible concerns, but the issue of enrichment is non-negotiable,” Mr. Araghchi said, according to English-language media accounts of his comments.
His words came just hours after U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff indicated that all of Iran’s nuclear-enrichment activities, including the enrichment of uranium, would not continue under the terms of a new nuclear deal.
“A deal with Iran will only be completed if it is a Trump deal. Any final arrangement must set a framework for peace, stability, and prosperity in the Middle East — meaning that Iran must stop and eliminate its nuclear enrichment and weaponization program,” Mr. Witkoff wrote on X. “It is imperative for the world that we create a tough, fair deal that will endure, and that is what President Trump has asked me to do.”
Mr. Witkoff and Mr. Araghchi met last weekend in Oman and are set to meet again this weekend in Rome, Iran confirmed on Wednesday.
One of the key questions has been whether the U.S. will insist on the full dismantlement of Iran’s plutonium production and uranium enrichment programs or accept something short of that. Analysts generally agree that right now, Iran’s uranium enrichment efforts are at a point where it could make enough weapons-grade uranium for a nuclear weapon within days.
The construction of a nuclear bomb itself would take significantly longer.
Mr. Witkoff’s most recent comments seem to be a reversal from earlier this week, when he suggested in an interview with Fox News that Iran would be allowed to enrich uranium up to 3.67%.
The 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, signed by the U.S. under then-President Obama, limited Iran’s uranium enrichment to that 3.67% level, which is enough to produce nuclear power but not enough for a weapon. Mr. Trump pulled the U.S. out of that deal during his first term. Mr. Trump and other critics said the 2015 agreement left open pathways for Iran to acquire a nuclear bomb and also did not address Tehran’s support for terrorist groups, among other shortcomings.
In February, the International Atomic Energy Agency said that Iran has more than 600 pounds of uranium enriched up to 60%. That was an increase of 204 pounds since the IAEA’s previous report in November, showing the rapid acceleration of Iran’s enrichment.
That 60% material is a short, technical step away from weapons-grade levels of 90%.
The Trump administration has made clear that it will not allow Iran to get a nuclear weapon and that military strikes are on the table if the two nations cannot make a deal.
