Iran: US Deal Reached if Focus is Not on Developing Nuclear Weapons

JAKARTA - A senior Iranian official said on Thursday that an agreement with the United States "is very possible to be reached" in the near future.

The main condition is that both parties agree that the essence of the current Geneva negotiations is Iran's commitment not to develop nuclear weapons.

As reported by ANTARA from Anadolu, Thursday, February 26, Ali Shamkhani, senior advisor to the Supreme Leader of Iran, confirmed through his X account that this nuclear weapons ban was in line with Ali Khamenei's "fatwa" (religious order).

Shamkhani, who is the head of the newly formed Defense Council, said Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who led the Iranian delegation in the Geneva talks, had "full support and authority for the deal."

The status of Iran's nuclear program is currently unclear following the June 2025 attack on three major nuclear facilities, which at the time US President Donald Trump claimed had "destroyed" the country's nuclear infrastructure.

However, in recent days, Trump has raised the possibility of targeting Iran's nuclear program, saying Tehran has not said they do not want nuclear weapons.

US special envoy Steve Witkoff also claimed in a recent television interview that Iran was "just a few weeks away" from building a nuclear weapon.

Iran insists it is not pursuing a nuclear weapons program. Its uranium enrichment activities are for peaceful and energy purposes.

In a statement on Thursday morning ahead of a new round of talks between Iran and the US, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian described Tehran's claims of seeking nuclear weapons as "lies," and insisted the country would not develop such weapons.

He cited the same religious fatwa by Khamenei banning weapons of mass destruction, which he said meant Tehran would not develop nuclear weapons.

The third and latest round of indirect nuclear negotiations between Iran and the US is currently underway in Geneva under Omani mediation.

The state-run IRNA news agency reported that a new round of indirect talks began at 10 a.m. local time at one of the buildings belonging to the Oman Embassy.

Shortly after arriving on Wednesday (25/2), Araghchi, who led the Iranian delegation in the talks, met with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Oman, Badr Al-Busaidi, to discuss the framework of the talks and the draft proposal from Tehran.

Rafael Grossi, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), also joined the talks as a technical observer, according to Iranian media reports.

The talks were held amid a significant increase in US military strength in the Persian Gulf region, along with a series of recent military exercises conducted by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).