Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said yesterday that his Government remains committed to a nuclear deal with world powers but is also ready to resume uranium enrichment should the accord no longer offer benefits.
Rouhani, who had made the deal his signature achievement, spoke following US President Donald Trump's announcement thatthe US would re-impose wide-ranging sanctions on Iran.
Britain, France and Germany have pledged to remain in the deal, while China's special envoy for the Middle East, Gong Xiaosheng, is urging all parties to adhere to the deal and solve the dispute through dialogue.
Rouhani said he had directed his diplomats to negotiate with the deal's remaining signatories and that the agreement could survive without the US. But he warned that Iran would begin enriching uranium beyond the levels allowed in the accord if the Government decides the country's needs are not being met. The country would take "a few weeks" to decide.
As part of the nuclear deal, Iran pledged never to "seek, develop or acquire any nuclear weapons". Iran's supreme religious and political leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has declared nuclear weapons to be un-Islamic, saying that its nuclear programme is aimed solely at producing energy and conducting medical research.
Trump's decision to reinstate "powerful" US nuclear-related sanctions against Iran could cripple the Iranian economy and put European allies in a bind over whether to continue investing in Iran, which was a key provision of the deal.
"If the Europeans are willing to give us sufficient guarantees, it makes sense for us to stay in the deal," said the deputy speaker of Iran's parliament, Ali Motahari.
In a joint statement, Britain, France and Germany expressed "regret and concern" over Trump's decision.
