Iran must develop atomic bomb if UN sanctions restored, senior MP says

Iran's foreign ministry in a statement on Friday criticized the three European powers for dismissing "Iran’s reasonable proposal—which they themselves admitted was logical."

The proposal cited by the foreign ministry was presented to European officials during Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi’s phone call with his counterparts on Wednesday.

According to details of the proposal revealed by Wall Street Journal correspondent Laurence Norman, Iran proposed diluting its 60% uranium stockpile to 20% in exchange for US sanctions relief along with the extension and then voiding of a Security Council Resolution which enables UN sanctions on Iran to resume.

Iran would also pledge to meet with the US president's special envoy Steve Witkoff, according to Norman's sources, in an apparent bid to fulfil the Europeans' demand Iran reengages in talks with the US.

Iran, he wrote, would do that in return for a US guarantee against any new military attack.

Highly enriched uranium stocks

The Wall Street Journal's report said that Iran has proposed to "retrieve all the 60% (enriched uranium) it could. Once retrieved, the UNSC would kill Resolution 2231 supporting the JCPOA."

In return, the report added, Iran said it would commence physically retrieving its stockpile of 60%-enriched uranium and then diluting it to 20% purity.

The fate of Iran’s highly enriched uranium (HEU) stockpile of 400 kg (882 pounds) remains under investigation, while Tehran claims it is trapped under rubble after US attacks on three nuclear sites in June.

“A wise colleague also points out that once Iran retrieves the HEU stockpile, if the deal then stalls, Tehran has solved one big problem it currently faces," Norman said. "Right now, if it retrieves the stockpile, it could face military action. This Iranian suggestion instructs Iran to retrieve it."

The London-based Amwaj Media also reported on Friday that Araghchi had been in touch with Witkoff on the proposal.

'Actionable plan'

French President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday that Iran’s Foreign Minister “tried to make a reasonable offer” to reach a deal with European powers but did not receive backing from other members of the Iranian ruling system.

Abbas Araghchi reacted to reports on the proposed deal, saying Tehran provided an “actionable plan.”

“Instead of being met with engagement on the substance of this plan, Iran is now faced with a litany of excuses and outright deflection, including the farcical claim that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs does not represent the entire political establishment,” Araghchi said.

“I have the full support of the entirety of the Islamic Republic of Iran, including my country's Supreme National Security Council,” he added.

Abbas Goudarzi, the spokesperson for the Iranian parliament's presiding board, called the looming snapback of UN sanctions on Iran "a propaganda tactic to pressure public opinion," urging Iranian authorities to "not let these exaggerations become a tool of internal pressure."

Mohammad Reza Pour-Ebrahimi, head of the Economic Commission of Iran’s Expediency Council, said the UN sanctions only target Iran’s nuclear and missile programs.

“They won’t impact trade, oil, or essential goods, serving merely as a means of psychological pressure,” Pour-Ebrahimi said.

The ultra-hardline Kayhan newspaper, which is linked to the office of Iran's Supreme Leader, dismissed the UN Security Council’s decision, and called for Tehran's withdrawal from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) in response to the looming sanctions snapback.

"The snapback mechanism does not change anything in practice, since current US sanctions are far more severe than the UN Security Council resolutions," the newspaper added.

Hossein-Ali Haji-Deligani, a senior member of Iran’s parliament, said the looming snapback of UN sanctions will bring no new sanctions or significant economic impact.

“Europe is waging psychological warfare to create a neither war nor peace scenario, but Iranian people will remain steadfast and unfazed,” he said.