Iran says not seeking to militarise nuclear program

Tehran, May 6 Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said that Iran will not seek to militarise its nuclear program.

"If the American side is honest in its request that the Islamic Republic of Iran should not have a nuclear bomb, many of the issues will be resolvable," he made the remarks at a weekly press conference on Monday.

"This is because we have already clearly declared and proved in practice that we have in no way been seeking to militarise our nuclear program and will not seek to do so," Baghaei added.

Commenting on recent US sanctions on Iran and the ongoing negotiations between the two countries, the spokesman said the "contradictory" messages sent by US officials would not affect Iran's determination to insist upon its principled positions, according to Xinhua news agency.

Iran's position regarding its right to make peaceful uses of nuclear energy is a fixed one and based on international law, Baghaei said.

He noted that Iran was ready to enter and continue a dialogue-based diplomatic path to resolve the issues pertaining to its nuclear program and the removal of US sanctions.

The delegations of Iran and the United States have so far held three rounds of indirect negotiations with mediation from Oman. The first and third rounds were held in the Omani capital Muscat on April 12 and April 26, with the second one in Rome on April 19.

The fourth round, which was scheduled for May 3 in Rome, was postponed to an unspecified date owing to what Oman described as "logistical reasons."

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump surprised many on Monday by announcing direct, high-level talks between the United States and Iran over the latter's nuclear program.

The announcement came during a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House.

"We're having direct talks with Iran," Trump said. "It's getting to be very dangerous territory, and hopefully, those talks will be successful."

He also disclosed that a "very big meeting" involving "very high-level" officials would be taking place this Saturday.

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