"Of course, countries that want to produce nuclear weapons enrich up to 90 percent purity," Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei said on Tuesday.
"Since we have no need for weapons and have decided against nuclear arms, we have not taken it that far; we have raised it to 60 percent, which is a very high level, a very good figure, and necessary for some of the domestic needs in our country."
Israel and the United States accused Iran of racing toward a bomb when they launched surprise attacks on Iranian nuclear sites in June - a campaign which ended two months of US-Iranian talks over Tehran's disputed activities.
The official US intelligence assessment in the run-up to the war was that Iran's leadership had not decided to pursue a weapon.
"The other side has threatened to bomb Iran if we do not negotiate," Khamenei added. "Accepting such negotiations would signal the Islamic Republic’s susceptibility to threats, and if it happens, there will be no end: first they demand the nuclear program, then the missiles, and then they move on to every issue."
"Iran lacked the technology to enrich uranium, and our enemies did not want us to have it. Our scientists managed to achieve the know-how," he added.
He said enriched uranium is very valuable for Iran as it has applications in various aspects of people's lives.
"People benefit from enriched uranium in agriculture, industry, nutrition, environment, education and research, power generation, and many other areas."