Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian stated on Tuesday that Tehran is open to verification to prove it is not seeking nuclear weapons.
His comments come as Iran resumed talks with the United States in Geneva, where negotiators reportedly agreed on a set of guiding principles for future discussions.
“We are absolutely not seeking nuclear weapons," Pezeshkian said in an interview, as quoted by several news agencies. “If anyone wants to verify this, we are open to such verification to take place."
Pezeshkian dismissed claims that Iran is pursuing nuclear weapons, describing such allegations as “politically motivated propaganda". He expressed hope that the international community, and the United States in particular, would recognize this as the reality.
The Iranian President also emphasized that his country requires nuclear science for medical and technological purposes. “We cannot accept being deprived of using nuclear science and knowledge to save the lives of our patients, advance our industries, and develop our agriculture," he stated.
Pezeshkian added that Iran is fully prepared for any form of verification regarding its nuclear program. He stated that the Islamic Republic has no concerns about inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Excerpts of the interview were published by the Iranian Presidency just hours after negotiators held a second round of nuclear talks with US representatives in Geneva. These discussions follow earlier talks held in Oman this month.
Speaking to Fox News after Tuesday's meeting, US Vice President JD Vance said that the talks "went well," but Iran has not accepted all of President Donald Trump's red lines.
President Trump "has shown very clearly that he is not Barack Obama," Vance stated. "He takes a much different approach to America's national security, and he's much more willing to act aggressively to defend America's national security."
"The President of the United States is very much trying to find a solution here, whether it's through diplomatic options or through another option, that means that the Iranians cannot have a nuclear weapon. That has always been the main focus," he said.
Trump spoke to reporters on Monday and indicated that he would be indirectly involved in this round of talks with Iran, which he described as “very important".
“I would say they're bad negotiators, because we could have had a deal instead of sending the B-2s in to knock out their nuclear potential, and we had to send the B-2s. I hope they're going to be more reasonable. They want to make a deal," he continued.
Responding to a reporter who asked whether he thinks a deal is next to impossible, Trump stated, “No, no. I think they want to make a deal.I don't think they want the consequences of not making a deal. They want to make a deal."
Meanwhile, even as the sides met, Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei published a series of threatening posts in English on social media.