Iran Says It’s Ready For New Nuclear Talks

Iran’s atomic chief Ali Akbar Salehi said Friday that Iran was ready to engage in new negotiations about its nuclear program.
Iran Says It’s Ready For New Nuclear Talks
Iran's atomic chief Ali Akbar Salehi (C) listens along with other unidentified officials to a speech in 2009. Salehi said Iran was ready to engage in new negotiations about its nuclear program. (Atta Kenare/AFP/Getty Images)
Jasper Fakkert
7/30/2010
Updated:
10/1/2015
<a><img src="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/09/93516283.jpg" alt="Iran's atomic chief Ali Akbar Salehi (C) listens along with other unidentified officials to a speech in 2009. Salehi said Iran was ready to engage in new negotiations about its nuclear program. (Atta Kenare/AFP/Getty Images)" title="Iran's atomic chief Ali Akbar Salehi (C) listens along with other unidentified officials to a speech in 2009. Salehi said Iran was ready to engage in new negotiations about its nuclear program. (Atta Kenare/AFP/Getty Images)" width="320" class="size-medium wp-image-1816794"/></a>
Iran's atomic chief Ali Akbar Salehi (C) listens along with other unidentified officials to a speech in 2009. Salehi said Iran was ready to engage in new negotiations about its nuclear program. (Atta Kenare/AFP/Getty Images)
Just days after the EU imposed a new set of sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program, Iran’s atomic chief Ali Akbar Salehi said Friday that Iran was ready to engage in new negotiations about its nuclear program.

The atomic chief  told Iranian media that the country would be ready to start talkswith the Vienna group within the next few days. The Vienna group consists of the United States, Russia and France and the International Atomic Energy Agency.

The United States and other nations believe that Iran is attempting to develop nuclear weapons. Tehran denies that its nuclear program is aimed at building weapons insisting that the program is for civil purposes only.

Salehi told Iranian news agency Tabnak, that “If the fuel needed to power the medical research [reactor] in Tehran would be provided, Iran will not need to produce uranium enriched to 20 percent.”

Last October fuel swap talks between Iran, Russia, France and the United States, failed to reach an agreement.

In May this year Iran, Tukey and Brazil agreed on a nuclear-fuel-swap deal. The deal allows Iran to ship low-enriched uranium to Turkey in exchange for nuclear fuel for its research reactor. However, according to the U.S., this deal did not represent a significant change to Iran’s nuclear program.

United Nations Security Council passed sanctions against Iran, June 9, mostly targeting investments connected to the Iran’s military.

Following the UN sanctions, the U.S., EU, and Canada imposed additional stricter sanctions, targeting Iran’s energy and banking sectors.

On Sunday, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad warned that “any actions” by countries which have imposed and supported sanctions on Iran “will be met with speedy responses from Iran, which will make them repent.”
Jasper Fakkert is the Editor-in-chief of the U.S. editions of The Epoch Times. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Communication Science and a Master's degree in Journalism. Twitter: @JasperFakkert
Related Topics