Iran’s Ali Bagheri Kani Rejects Talks Over Enriched Uranium Stockpile, Warns Strait of Hormuz Rules

Iran’s Deputy Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council Ali Bagheri Kani said Tehran is not prepared to negotiate over its stockpile of enriched uranium, describing the issue as one of Iran’s “red lines.”

Speaking on the sidelines of the 14th International Meeting of High Representatives for Security Issues in Moscow, Bagheri Kani told reporters, “The issue of Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile is in no way part of our current negotiations agenda.”

Al Jazeera

Bagheri Kani said indirect contacts between Tehran and Washington are continuing, while warning that shipping procedures through the Strait of Hormuz will change following the recent conflict in the region.

He also said no final agreement would be considered reached unless all disputes are resolved comprehensively, adding, “Until we agree on everything, we have not agreed on anything.”

Bagheri Kani said Iran and Oman are working together to establish a new mechanism governing shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, described as a vital global energy corridor.

He warned that maritime operations in the waterway would not return to previous norms, stating, “shipping procedures in the Strait of Hormuz after the war will be completely different from the procedures that existed before the outbreak of the armed conflict.”

Al Jazeera

In Russia’s capital, another report quoted Bagheri Kani saying, “This issue is not on the agenda of the negotiations,” when asked about the roughly 900 pounds of highly enriched uranium that international monitors believe is still buried under one of Iran’s badly damaged nuclear facilities.

The same coverage said President Trump had previously claimed Iran was ready to hand what he refers to as its “nuclear dust” over to the U.S., while Trump later said the regime could dispose of its highly-enriched uranium inside the country, or “at another acceptable location.”

Türk iye Today reported that Bagheri said Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile is not part of current negotiations with the U.S., pushing back against President Donald Trump’s demand that it be transferred or destroyed immediately.

The same report said Bagheri told TASS, “As for indirect contacts with the Americans, yes, they are continuing,” and added that the diplomatic process between Washington and Tehran is being mediated by Pakistan.

Bagheri also said Iran and Oman were discussing a new mechanism for ship passage through the Strait of Hormuz, telling TASS, “As for the Strait of Hormuz specifically, undoubtedly, the conditions of passage through the strait and the order of passage will not be the same.”

Iranpress framed the position as a condition for any outcome, saying Bagheri-Kani added that if the details are discussed at this stage, “no result will be reached,” noting that the path had been tried before and the differences were too wide to produce an agreement.