Uranium Enrichment Still the Main Topic of US-Iran Peace Talks

JAKARTA - US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the issue of uranium enrichment is still on the agenda of peace negotiations between the United States and Iran.

"There has been some progress. The basic principle remains the same. Iran will never be allowed to have nuclear weapons, not at all. The current regime will never have nuclear weapons; and to achieve that, we have to deal with the issue of uranium enrichment. We also have to deal with the issue of highly enriched uranium," Rubio said in a meeting with NATO foreign ministers in Sweden, Switzerland, Friday, May 22, reported Sputnik.

Rubio explained that his party is still waiting for the latest developments from the ongoing negotiations between the United States and Iran, but he emphasized that his basic principle remains the same, namely that Iran must not have nuclear weapons.

Last week, US President Donald Trump said he would be satisfied if Iran stopped uranium enrichment for 20 years.

In response, the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Kemlu) stated that it did not intend to give up the rights guaranteed in the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

The United States is seeking to curb Iran's nuclear ambitions, while Tehran insists it wants to first receive peace guarantees before it is willing to discuss its nuclear program.