Iran indicated on Friday that it is not willing to sacrifice its uranium enrichment program, diminishing the likelihood of diplomacy as Israel continues to hammer the country’s nuclear sites and President Donald Trump weighs American military intervention.
Tehran signaled in talks with European countries Friday that it is “ready to discuss limitations on its uranium enrichment, but said the prospect of zero enrichment would undoubtedly be rejected, especially while Israel was attacking,” according to Reuters. The meeting in Geneva between Iranian foreign minister Abbas Aragchi and the E3 nations—Britain, France, and Germany—tested Tehran’s willingness to potentially sit down with the Trump administration before the United States decides to strike the Islamic Republic’s remaining nuclear facilities.
Iran’s negotiating position is a nonstarter for the United States, though, which says Tehran must completely surrender its uranium enrichment program. French president Emmanuel Macron reportedly embraced Trump’s no-enrichment policy in recent days, as have German foreign minister Johann Wadephul and British officials. The E3’s policy shift, however, has done little to sway a recalcitrant Iran, which says it will not meet directly with the Trump administration until Israel’s campaign ends.
“It is absolutely essential to prioritize a return to substantive negotiations, which include nuclear issues to move toward zero enrichment, ballistics to limit Iranian activities and capabilities, and the financing of all the terrorist groups destabilizing the region,” Macron said Friday before the E3 meeting with Aragchi.
Iranian officials said after the meeting that “only by stopping the aggression can the path of diplomacy be opened based on an honest process,” according to the country’s state-controlled press. Aragchi struck a similar tone on state-run television, saying, “There is no room for negotiations with the U.S. until Israeli aggression stops.”
Tehran’s diplomatic efforts with the Europeans are not likely to succeed given the E3’s stance on enrichment and the need for the United States to endorse any framework produced in these talks.
President Donald Trump praised Israel’s war effort Friday afternoon, saying it would be difficult to end the Jewish state’s successful siege.
“Israel is doing well, in terms of war, Iran is doing… less well. It’s a little bit hard to get someone to stop,” Trump told reporters. ” I think it’s very hard to make that request right now. When someone is winning, it’s a little harder to do than when someone is losing”
The president also dismissed Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard’s recent claims that Iran is not building nuclear weapons.
“She’s wrong,” Trump said.
Israel continued to pummel military sites across Iran on Friday following Trump’s statement the previous day that he will decide “whether or not to go within the next two weeks.”
The president would not rule out a U.S. strike on Iran, saying, “Sometimes you need some toughness to make peace.”
More than 25 Israeli fighter jets “struck and neutralized over 35 missile storage and launch infrastructure components in the areas of Tabriz and Kermanshah in Iran,” according to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). These operations are meant to stop Tehran from launching ballistic missiles into Israel, which the Islamic Republic has done in waves since hostilities broke out last week.
Throughout Thursday evening into Friday, more than 50 Israeli jets “flew continuously over Tehran and struck infrastructure and targets,” including facilities tied to Iran’s nuclear program and “military-industrial sites used to manufacture missile components,” the IDF said. Other targets included the “industrial core of Iran’s ministry of defense.”
Israel also struck Iran’s Organization of Defensive Innovation and Research, or SPND, which anchors the country’s entire nuclear industry.
“This headquarters building was used for research and development of advanced weaponry,” the IDF said in a briefing, noting that supporting strikes hit “a facility that produced a critical component of the nuclear weapons program.”
Another overnight operation in Western Iran destroyed “missile launch and storage sites,” the IDF added. The targets were destroyed before Iran was able to launch a ballistic missile salvo at Be’er Sheva, a major population center in southern Israel.
“Prior to launch,” the IDF said, “we detected the deployment of three launchers that were ready to fire . . . and we neutralized them.”
A week of attacks on Iran’s missile systems has significantly degraded its ability to fire on Israel, allowing the country to “operate for the long term” in Iranian airspace, according to the IDF.
The Jewish state made clear that it will not scale back war operations in the near future, even as Tehran pursues diplomacy with the Europeans.
“We have additional targets to strike—in Tehran, in western Iran, and in other areas,” the IDF said. “We are expanding our aerial superiority in the region and focusing our offensive efforts.”
Iran’s offensive capabilities are somewhat hamstrung by Israel’s ongoing assault, but ballistic missiles continue to fly toward Israeli cities.
At least one ballistic missile launched on Thursday morning was equipped with a cluster bomb payload. While these missiles lack precision guidance, they are designed to spray shrapnel over wide spaces and often leave unexploded ordnance in their wake.
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