Iran

TEHRAN, April 16 (Xinhua) -- Iranian nuclear delegates will not engage in "attritional" negotiations only "for the sake of negotiations," Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Thursday.

"As we did not accept talks leading to a photo op in the past four years, today we will seriously refuse to engage in negotiations for the sake of negotiations as well," he wrote on social media late at night, as quoted by Iran's Press TV.

TEHRAN, April 15 (Xinhua) -- Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Thursday dismissed concerns about Iran's plan to enrich uranium to 60-percent purity, saying that "we are not looking for a nuclear bomb."

"Some have interpreted that 60 percent is a means to reaching 90 percent (of uranium enrichment). It is not correct. It is wrong to think that we are paving the way for the production of the atomic bomb," Rouhani was quoted by official IRNA news agency as saying.

14 Apr 2021; MEMO: Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said that sanctions and sabotage attempts will not create opportunities for negotiations with the United States over the nuclear deal, but rather make the matter more complicated.

This came in a meeting between Zarif and his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in the capital, Tehran, yesterday, in response to the attack on the Natanz nuclear facility, according to state television.

13 Apr 2021; MEMO: Iran said on Tuesday it would begin enriching uranium to 60% purity, a move that would take the fissile material much closer to the 90% suitable for a nuclear bomb, a day after Tehran accused arch-foe Israel of sabotaging a key nuclear site, Reuters reported.

TEHRAN, April 13 (Xinhua) -- Visiting Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said here on Tuesday that all the U.S. sanctions against Iran should be removed unconditionally, according to official IRNA news agency.

"Our position is clear, and all sanctions against Iran should be lifted unconditionally. And I hope that by lifting sanctions on Iran, more cooperation climate will be created," Lavrov said, elaborating on Russia's position as a member of the 2015 nuclear deal, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), on the return of the United States to the deal.

TEHRAN, April 13. /TASS/: Tehran begins uranium enrichment to 60% on Wednesday, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated Tuesday.

According to the report, Iran informed the International Atomic Energy Agency that the country plans to start the 60-percent uranium enrichment on Wednesday.

The diplomat also disclosed that Iran plans not only to replace the centrifuges damaged during the recent sabotage at the Natanz nuclear site but "to install an additional 1000 centrifuges of 50% higher enrichment capacity."

13 Apr 2021; MEMO: Iraq's National Security Adviser, Qassem Al-Araji, arrived in Iran to discuss the US' withdrawal from his country, Al-Araby Al-Jadeed news site reported.

A senior Iraqi official told the site that Al- Araji met in Tehran with the Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council of Iran, Ali Shamkhani, and discussed the results of the third round of talks between Baghdad and Washington which were concluded last week.

12 Apr 2021; MEMO: The head of the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran (AEOI), Ali Akbar Salehi, said the Islamic Republic is a leading global producer and exporter of radiopharmaceuticals.

"Our production of radiopharmaceuticals is increasing every year, for example, we have produced radioactive medicine whose foreign version is worth €15,000 [$17,828]," Salehi said, noting that in September Iran will launch a new project worth €60 million ($71.3 million) to produce radiopharmaceuticals.

11 Apr 2021; MEMO: Iran reported 258 deaths from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, the health ministry said on Sunday, the highest daily toll since early December, Reuters reported.

11 Apr 2021; MEMO: An Iranian official said Sunday a power failure in the Natanz nuclear plant, near Tehran, may be the result of a "sabotage and infiltration act", according to the semi-official Fars news agency, Anadolu Agency reported.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity, without giving any further details.