Iranian Foreign Minister: Peaceful Nuclear Program Becomes National Pride

JAKARTA - Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran's "peaceful" nuclear program had become a symbol of "national pride and honor."

In an interview with CBS News, Araghchi confirmed Iran has a legitimate right to enrich uranium.

"We have also gone through 12 days of war by force; therefore, the people (Iran) will not be easy to stop enrichment", Araghchi said, referring to the Israeli and US military attacks on Iran's nuclear facilities reported by ANTARA from IRNA, Tuesday, July 1.

He stressed that enrichment of uranium core technology in nuclear programs cannot be destroyed simply by bomb attacks. The science and technical expertise that Iran already has cannot be eliminated.

Regarding the continuation of negotiations with the US regarding Iran's nuclear program, Araghchi said that the door to diplomacy would always be open. However, he admitted that he did not believe the negotiations would resume in the near future.

He also said Iran asked for guarantees from the US before returning to negotiations.

"We have to make sure that America will not attack us again during negotiations," Araghchi said.