Shafaq News/ Iran hasincreased its nuclear capabilities since the United States withdrew from the2015 nuclear deal, Iran's Vice-President for Strategic Affairs Mohammad JavadZarif said on Wednesday.
"We were a year away froma nuclear weapon when [John] Bolton wrote a memorandum to get [Donald] Trumpout. And today, even the Americans say we are a few days away," Zarif saidat the World Economic Forum in Davos.
Rejecting Israel’s claims thatIran is close to developing nuclear weapons, he said, “Iran has never soughtnuclear weapons…These weapons are developed in secret laboratories, not throughopen programs like ours,” he explained.
While Iran maintains that itsnuclear program is strictly for civilian purposes, US intelligence agencies andthe International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have reported military nuclearactivities in Iran until 2003. These reports also suggest that Iran’s recentactivities go “beyond civilian necessity.”
Conversely, Israel accusesIran of concealing nuclear facilities in fortified mountains and continuingefforts to develop nuclear weapons.
Notably, tensions haveescalated since the US withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action(JCPOA) in 2018 under President Donald Trump.
The JCPOA, signed in 2015between Iran and the P5+1 nations (the US, UK, France, Russia, China, andGermany), aimed to limit Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for liftingsanctions. Iran agreed to cap uranium enrichment, reduce its nuclear stockpile,and allow IAEA inspections.
Following the US exit, Irangradually ceased compliance with the JCPOA, significantly increasing itsuranium enrichment.
By 2025, Iran has stockpiledapproximately 200 kilograms of uranium enriched to 60% purity, nearing the 90%required for weapons-grade material.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( VP Zarif: Iran never pursued nuclear weapons )
Also on site :
- She escaped an avalanche and became the first woman to summit Everest. Today, few remember her name
- Metal Ions: The Next Frontier in Diabetes Management?
- Germany could reintroduce military draft – defense minister