Iran says 'not difficult' to assure Trump it does not seek nuclear arms

Demonstrating to US President Donald Trump that Iran does not seek nuclear weapons will not be difficult and is achievable, foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said on Wednesday, in an apparent olive branch to Tehran's main adversary.

"If the main issue is ensuring that Iran does not pursue nuclear weapons, this is achievable and not a difficult matter," Araghchi said.

Trump said on Tuesday he hoped for an agreement denying Iran nuclear weapons.

"They cannot have a nuclear weapon," he told reporters at a press conference held after signing a memorandum to restore his so-called maximum pressure policy against Iran.

"If ... they can convince us that they won't, and I hope they can," Trump continued, "It's actually very easy to do, I think they're going to have an unbelievable future."

The US President's directive on squeezing Tehran on Tuesday seeks to deny Iran nuclear weapons, limit its ballistic missile program and halt support for terrorism.

The head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization, Mohammad Eslami, also weighed in on Trump's directive, saying Tehran has not and will never pursue nuclear weapons.

While Tehran has maintained its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes, it has accelerated its uranium enrichment to up to 60% — close to the 90% threshold that is considered weapons-grade, according to the UN nuclear watchdog.

The Iranian foreign minister's latest comments did not directly address Trump's sanctions directive but instead appeared to signal Tehran's openness to negotiations on the nuclear issue.

Trump on Wednesday expressed hope for a nuclear agreement, telling reporters that he would be willing to engage in talks with his Iranian counterpart.

Iran's First Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref said that although a meeting between "two human beings" is not impossible, engaging in talks with Trump is not currently on the Islamic Republic's agenda.

Fatemeh Mohajerani, the spokesperson for the presidential administration, also reacted to the US president's remarks regarding his readiness to negotiate with the Iranian president, saying, "Our country's foreign policy has always been based on a set of fixed principles."

"We follow three key principles: the dignity of the country and its people, wisdom in understanding underlying issues, and expediency. All national matters, particularly relations with other countries, are pursued based on these principles."

Trump’s National Security Presidential Memorandum (NSPM) did not mention any meetings or immediate negotiations.

'A failed experience'

In his Wednesday remarks, Araghchi dismissed Trump’s renewal the previous day of the so-called maximum pressure strategy of his first term aiming to reduce Iranian oil exports to zero.

"Maximum pressure is a failed experiment, and trying it again will only lead to another failure," Araghchi told Iranian media on Wednesday.

In Trump's first term in office, Iran's oil exports were reduced to near zero by re-imposing sanctions. Under former US President Joe Biden, however, Iran's oil exports increased starting in 2021 as Tehran found ways to circumvent those sanctions.