Iranian Minister: We may pursue a nuclear weapon

Iranian Minister: We may pursue a nuclear weapon

Iran’s Intelligence Minister says his country could push for a nuclear weapon if sanctions remain in place.

Iran’s Intelligence Minister, Mahmoud Alavi, on Tuesday warned the West that his country could push for a nuclear weapon if the international sanctions on Tehran remain in place, The Associated Press reported.

“Our nuclear program is peaceful and the fatwa by the Supreme Leader has forbidden nuclear weapons, but if they push Iran in that direction, then it wouldn’t be Iran’s fault but those who pushed it,” Alavi was quoted as saying, referring a 1990s religious edict issued by the country’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, which states that nuclear weapons are forbidden.

“If a cat is cornered, it may show a kind of behavior that a free cat would not,” he warned, adding that Iran has no plans to move toward a nuclear weapon under current circumstances.

The comments come as the fate of the 2015 nuclear deal signed between Iran and the West remains unclear.

Former US President Donald Trump withdrew from the 2015 agreement nearly three years ago and reimposed sanctions on Iran. The Islamic Republic, in turn, has gradually scaled back its compliance with the 2015 deal.

President Joe Biden has expressed a desire to return to the 2015 agreement but has stressed he would return to the 2015 agreement if Iran returned to compliance with it.

Iran has repeatedly made clear that it will not renegotiate the original agreement.

The Islamic Republic also demands that the US lift the sanctions that were imposed on it. Biden, however, made clear this week that the US will not lift its sanctions on Tehran until Iran freezes its uranium enrichment.