Iran must reduce its uranium enrichment capacity as a mandatory condition for ending the war with the United States, US Vice President JD Vance said in an interview with Reuters.
Vance stated that the United States will not exchange words for actions in diplomatic negotiations. He emphasized that halting the production of highly enriched fuel is a foundational issue that Iran must resolve if it maintains that it does not seek to build nuclear weapons.
Vance questioned why Iran would require enriched fuel if it has no intention of developing nuclear weapons. He argued that if Iranian leaders wish to demonstrate a clear commitment to avoiding nuclear weapons creation, the country must stop producing highly enriched fuel.
Uranium enrichment is the industrial process of concentrating uranium isotopes to produce nuclear fuel. While low-enriched uranium is used to generate electricity in civilian power reactors, highly enriched uranium can be refined further to manufacture nuclear warheads.
Negotiations with Iranian leadership
The Vice President confirmed that American officials are currently holding negotiations with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in an effort to address the situation.
However, Vance warned that these ongoing diplomatic talks might not yield results. He explained that American negotiators find it difficult to predict outcomes because decision-making processes within the Iranian government are not entirely clear.
Masoud Pezeshkian serves as the President of Iran, while Abbas Araghchi heads the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, representing Tehran in international diplomatic discussions.
Flydubai aviation incident
Vance also commented on an earlier aviation security incident involving a commercial passenger plane operated by Flydubai. The Vice President stated that he had seen no evidence indicating Iranian involvement in the aircraft incident.
He added that he would not claim to have seen any conclusive proof regarding Iranian responsibility for the Flydubai plane incident up to the present moment.
Flydubai is a government-owned budget airline headquartered in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. Reuters is a global news organization based in London.
