Iran on Monday indicated it is open to compromises on its nuclear program in talks with the United States, after US President Donald Trump described weekend talks with Tehran as "very good". Iran's foreign ministry said Tehran is ready to make sure that its nuclear program would not be weaponised, but asserted that uranium enrichment remains non-negotiable for them, according to a CNN report.
"If the intention is to make sure that Iran's nuclear program would not be weaponised, I think that's something that we could simply do," Esmail Baghaei, Tehran's Foreign Ministry spokesperson, told the American publication.
When asked how Washington and Tehran could reach a compromise in talks, Baghaei said, "So many ways" without getting into details. He, however, reiterated that the deal would have to protect Iran's right to nuclear energy, echoing the long-standing Iranian position on talks.
"If the (US') intention is to deprive Iranians of their right to peaceful nuclear energy, I think that would be very problematic to the extent that I think it would really challenge the whole process," Baghaei said.
Later, he said that if there is goodwill from the American side, "we are also optimistic, but if negotiations are aimed at curbing Iran's rights, then talks will get nowhere," according to news agency Reuters.
Meanwhile, Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian said Tehran would be able to survive if negotiations with the US over its nuclear programme fail to secure a deal.
"It's not like we will die of hunger if they refuse to negotiate with us or impose sanctions. We will find a way to survive," Pezeshkian was quoted as saying by state media about the talks with Washington.
The negotiations are aimed at resolving a decades-long dispute over Iran's nuclear ambitions as Trump has threatened crippling economic sanctions and bombing on Tehran if it fails to reach a deal. Trump wants to curtail Tehran's potential to produce a nuclear weapon that could trigger a regional nuclear arms race and perhaps threaten Israel.
Iran, for its part, maintains that its nuclear programme is exclusively for civilian purposes and wants to be rid of devastating sanctions on its oil-based economy.
