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Commander-in-Chief of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Ahmad Vahidi has said that Iran will continue working on nuclear weapons as long as the United States and Israel possess them, Israeli media reported.
"As long as the United States and Israel possess nuclear weapons, we will continue working on them for our national security. If they disarm, we will disarm," Vahidi was quoted as saying, according to Israeli media, calling it a "direct admission" by an Iranian official of pursuing a nuclear bomb. Earlier, US President Donald Trump on Wednesday (local time) said "a lot of progress" had been made and claimed that Iran had reached out seeking talks, adding that the situation would become clearer within the next 48 hours, Fox News reported. "We're moving along very nicely. We'll find out. We'll know in 48 hours, I would say," Trump told reporters as he departed Los Angeles for Las Vegas as part of a two-day West Coast trip. Trump said that Iranian officials had contacted the US and expressed an interest in talks, while suggesting that Tehran would be "very smart" to reach a deal. "A lot of progress has been made. They called me, and they said, 'Please, let's talk.' They want to talk. The funny thing is, they never mention that... I think they'd be very smart to make a deal. We'll see what happens," he said. Meanwhile, on Tuesday (local time), Trump said that the Strait of Hormuz would be opened "very soon" as part of a deal with Iran and Oman, while warning that the Islamic Republic would be "hit really hard" if it fails to reach an agreement amid talks over an interim arrangement to ease tensions in the region. He further reiterated his stance that Iran would not be allowed to acquire a nuclear weapon and linked the reopening of the strategic waterway to the ongoing diplomatic efforts. During an interview with Fox News, Trump said, "Iran, as an example, will never have a nuclear weapon. They already can't, but they'll--it's going to be formal. The strait's going to be open very soon, or they're going to get hit very hard, and then the strait's going to be open." His remarks came as the US, Iran, and Oman are reportedly close to finalising an interim agreement aimed at reopening the Strait of Hormuz, which has witnessed heightened tensions following the collapse of a 14-point Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Washington and Tehran last month, Axios reported, citing two regional sources and a US official. (ANI)
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