WASHINGTON - US President Donald Trump ruled out allowing Iran to enrich uranium under any nuclear deal between the foes -- as Tehran defended what it said was its "peaceful" pursuit of fuel for power generation.
Uranium enrichment has remained a key point of contention in five rounds of talks since April to ink a new accord to replace the deal with major powers that Trump abandoned during his first term in 2018.
"Under our potential Agreement — WE WILL NOT ALLOW ANY ENRICHMENT OF URANIUM!" Trump said on his Truth Social network after the Axios news outlet said Washington's offer would let Tehran enrich some of the nuclear fuel.
Republican Trump also blamed predecessor Joe Biden for the impasse, saying the Democrat "should have stopped Iran a long time ago from 'enriching.'"
Axios said the latest proposal that Washington had sent Tehran on Saturday would allow limited low-level uranium enrichment on Iranian soil, for an amount of time that has yet to be determined.
Iran has insisted that Iran has "nothing to hide" on its nuclear program.
Speaking in Cairo, where he met the UN nuclear watchdog's chief Rafael Grossi, Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said: "If the goal is to deprive Iran of its peaceful activities, then certainly no agreement will be reached."
The remarks came after Grossi of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on Monday called for more transparency from Iran following a leaked report that showed Tehran had stepped up uranium enrichment.
The IAEA report showed that Iran has ramped up production of uranium enriched up to 60 percent -- close to the roughly 90 percent level needed for atomic weapons.
There is a need for more transparency -- this is very, very clear -- in Iran, and nothing will bring us to this confidence (besides) full explanations of a number of activities," Grossi said ahead of meeting Araghchi.
Grossi added that some of the report's findings "may be uncomfortable for some, and we are... used to being criticised".
Iran has rejected the report, warning it would retaliate if European powers that have threatened to reimpose nuclear sanctions "exploit" it.
"Some countries are trying to abuse this agency to pave the way for escalation with Iran. I hope that this agency does not fall into this trap," Araghchi said of the IAEA.