Tehran – Iran is open to exploring nuclear consortiums with regional countries, as long as it continues to enrich uranium within the country, according to information obtained by the Tehran Times. However, no concrete plans for such a consortium have been developed yet.
Tehran and Washington have been engaged in indirect negotiations to speak about transactions that would limit Iran’s nuclear activity in exchange for the end of sanctions. Last week, reports in western media found that Iranian officials proposed a consortium with the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, and are said to persuade the US to “permit” Iran’s continued uranium enrichment.
A source who spoke to the Tehran Times said that the Iranians did not pitch the consortium’s proposal, but rather they proposed it. “Iran has no problem sharing knowledge and products with local countries,” the source said. “We responded actively to this proposal, but made it clear that even if such an alliance was formed, we would not abandon domestic enrichment in favour of receiving rich uranium from other countries.”
Recommendations remain undeveloped and have not been discussed in detail. Certain countries are not approaching to join a potential consortium with Iran.
The second source also claims that the US claims that Iran asked them to stop enriching uranium for several years is false. “From the start, the negotiation team, tasked with discussing potential new agreements with the US, made it clear that halting uranium enrichment is not a temporary option,” Iran also maintained this position throughout the diplomatic process that led to the signing of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), sources added.