Iran says it will "never" stop its uranium enrichment program and insists it is for "peaceful" purposes.

BarcelonaIran's ambassador to the UN, Amir Saeid Iravani, has said that the uranium enrichment program will "never" stop because it is for "peaceful energy" purposes and complies with the nuclear non-proliferation treaty signed by the Islamic Republic. "Enrichment is an inalienable right, and we want to implement it," he said in an interview broadcast early this morning on the American network CBS. He also expressed his willingness to negotiate, but warned that "unconditional surrender is not negotiation." "It seeks to dictate our policy," he said, and clarified that "there is no request" for a new meeting with the United States, after Washington will bomb three of the country's main nuclear facilities in support of Israel's attack..

Iran's UN envoy also denied that his government is threatening Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), or its inspectors, who are currently in Iran but have been allowed access to its nuclear facilities by Tehran. He admitted that Iran's parliament has suspended cooperation with the IAEA: "The inspectors are in Iran, they are in safe conditions, but our assessment is that they have not done their job." The Iranian diplomat said on Saturday that Iran would agree to move its stockpiles of enriched uranium—even those with a 20% enrichment level, which can only be used for civilian purposes—to another country in exchange for US acceptance of its nuclear program. Iran is also willing to leave its nuclear material under supervision. It will give up its right to enrich uranium within its territory, a right protected by international law and rejected by the US.

The United States and the EU are pressuring Iran to resume negotiations on its nuclear program a week after Washington attacked three of its main nuclear facilities. Donald Trump claimed they had been "totally destroyed," but it is unclear how much damage has been done to Iran's nuclear program. Grossi said that "the level of damage is very serious," but also warned that Iran will likely be able to resume uranium enrichment within months because the program's capabilities are still "existing."

Trump on Sunday denied reports that Iran had moved 400 kilograms of 60% enriched uranium before the US attack on the Fordow plant, one of its main US enrichment facilities, which is partially buried and only in the ground.

However, the Washington Post The US reported on Sunday that the US intercepted Iranian communications in which senior Iranian officials commented that the damage from the attack had not been as destructive and extensive as anticipated. White House spokeswoman Caroline Leavitt played down the communications but did not deny them: "The idea that anonymous Iranian officials know what happened hundreds of meters underground is nonsense," she said.

Separately, Iran's chief of staff, Abdolrahim Mousavi, spoke with the Saudi defense minister on Sunday to express his doubts about the 12-day ceasefire called by Trump last week: "We have absolute doubts that the enemy will carry out its responses, forcefully in the event of a repeat act of aggression." Israel and the US "have shown that they do not respect any international law or norm," the Iranian general added. "We did not start the war, but we responded with all our power to the aggressor."