Iran’s President: Iran will rebuild its nuclear sites if attacked

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian stated on Thursday that while Tehran’s adversaries might succeed in targeting the country’s nuclear facilities, they cannot eliminate its capability to construct new ones, Reuters reported.

“They threaten us that they will hit nuclear facilities… If you (the enemy) strike a hundred of those we will build a thousand other ones… You can hit the buildings and the places but you cannot hit those who build it,” Pezeshkian said, as reported by state media.

His remarks followed a report in the Wall Street Journal which cited US intelligence reports that have concluded that Israel is considering significant strikes on Iranian nuclear sites this year.

US President Donald Trump has said in recent days that he would rather reach a deal with Iran on its nuclear program than have Israel attack Iran’s nuclear facilities.

In 2018, during his first term in office, Trump withdrew from the 2015 nuclear agreement between Iran and world powers, reinstating strict US sanctions as part of his “maximum pressure” campaign against Tehran.

In response, Iran has taken many steps to scale back its compliance with the deal.

In its latest step to advance its nuclear program, Iran recently informed the IAEA of its intention to “significantly increase” its production of uranium enriched up to 60 percent.

Since the start of his second term, Trump has reaffirmed his “maximum pressure” approach against Iran, and this past week imposed financial sanctions on individuals and entities accused of facilitating the shipment of hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of Iranian crude oil to China.

Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, last week cautioned the government against engaging in talks with Washington, describing such a move as “reckless.”

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi made clear on Saturday that Iran is open to negotiations with the United States but not under Trump’s “maximum pressure” strategy.

“The lifting of sanctions requires negotiations, but not within the framework of a ‘maximum pressure’ policy, because it would not be a negotiation but a form of surrender,” Araqchi stated in a message published on Telegram.