Thirteen years ago, when American missiles and Israeli fighter jets weren't shrieking over Iranian skies, and when the world wasn't panicking over an oil and gas supply crisis, Tehran's nuclear talks point man and advisor to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Ali Larijani was in India.
Larijani died last week in an Israeli air strike, his death dealing the Iranian regime a double blow because it came days after Khamenei was killed; he died on Day 1 of the US-Israel strikes.
Larijani then spoke to NDTV on several topics, from India-Iran relations to a spot analysis of the Israel threat.
But the exchange that stood out – and, with the benefit of hindsight, was a precursor to the war, was on a future fuel crisis and apparent ambivalence in Tehran's nuclear ambitions.
Iran has repeatedly said its nuclear programme is for civilian use only, a point made by the ex-Ayatollah in October 2003 when he said the 'use of such weapons (nuclear, biological, and chemical) is haram (i.e., forbidden)'.
Of course, Iran critics and nuclear watchdogs have long pointed to loopholes in the wording of the former Ayatollah's fatwa, and Khamenei himself seemed to backtrack in 2023, when he told the West they 'cannot stop' Tehran from building nuclear weapons if they choose to do so.
On this seeming discord, Larijani told NDTV: "Iran wants to have access to nuclear knowledge… fuel for our power plants. You know that in the future fuel is going to be a crucial matter."
"Countries should have access to this technology. But, at the same time, they should have enough understanding to not develop a nuclear bomb. We have proven this."
Iran's nuclear programme has been a longstanding flashpoint with the West and specifically the US, which is convinced Tehran could quickly weaponise its stockpile of enriched uranium to 60 per cent, the threshold to build nuclear weapons. The February 28 attack was triggered, US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff said, claiming Iran 'evaded oversight protocols' to amass 460kg.
In early March Witkoff told FOX News talks broke down because the Iran delegation (which included Larijani) 'made it clear their goal is to maintain enrichment for purpose of armament'. "We responded that the President (Donald Trump) feels we have the inalienable right to stop you dead in your tracks," Witkoff Was quoted by Israeli publication The Times of Israel.
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Iran, though, has not helped its case by limiting IAEA, or International Atomic Energy Association, inspections, particularly after US-Israel strikes on Iran nuclear bases in June 2025.
Speaking to NDTV, Larijani had then pointed out that according to IAEA rules "member countries can have access to this knowledge, and they can have peaceful programs". He continued: "Why is it they say Iran should not have a peaceful program? Based on what international law?"
The head of Iran's powerful Supreme National Security Council also made pointed references to the US in his talk with NDTV, though he did not name the country. Referring only to "they", Larijani responded to a question about "Iran disturbing the balance of power in the region".
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"I think they are doing this. They are classifying countries of the region because they want to dominate the energy resources. Therefore there are different classifications."
"They want to have a monopoly. They want to dominate the energy sources of the world. Maybe one of the plots that they will be following in the future will be to prevent the progress of major powers in the east by controlling their energy sources," he said.
