Nuclear Activities ‘Irreversible,’ Iran Declares
Iran said Sunday that its nuclear program was irreversible, again rejecting a U.N. Security Council deadline to cease enriching uranium that expires in four days.
Tehran announced this month that it had enriched uranium using 164 centrifuges, a step toward large-scale production of nuclear material that can be used either in atomic weapons or in nuclear power plants.
“Nuclear research will continue. Suspension of [nuclear activities including uranium enrichment] is not on our agenda. This issue is irreversible,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi told reporters.
The United States and some allies say Iran is using the program as a cover for weapons production. Iran says it is designed only for power generation.
The United Nations Security Council’s Friday deadline is not binding, but the U.S. and Britain said Iran must comply or the two countries would seek a resolution to make the demand compulsory, which would raise the possibility of sanctions.
An Iranian spokesman said Sunday that a Russian compromise plan for joint uranium enrichment remained under consideration.
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