TEHRAN: Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian has vowed to rebuild Tehran’s nuclear facilities “with greater strength” after Israeli and US strikes earlier this year.
The Iranian President, while speaking to state media on Sunday, added that the country does not seek nuclear weapons.
US President Donald Trump has warned that he would order renewed strikes on Iran’s nuclear sites if Tehran attempts to restart the facilities targeted by US airstrikes in June.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian made the remarks during a visit to the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran, where he met with senior officials from the country’s nuclear sector.
“Destroying buildings and factories will not create a problem for us; we will rebuild and with greater strength,” the Iranian president told state media.
In June, the US conducted strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities that Washington says were part of a programme geared toward developing nuclear weapons. Tehran says that its nuclear programme is for purely civilian purposes.
“It’s all intended for solving the problems of the people, for disease, for the health of the people,” Pezeshkian said in reference to Iran’s nuclear activities.
It is pertinent to mention that Iran’s foreign minister has said that Tehran would neither halt uranium enrichment nor negotiate over its missile programme, warning that any new Israeli attack would trigger “serious consequences”.
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told Al Jazeera that Iran had “effectively managed” the June war with Israel and prevented it from escalating across the region.
“Iran is fully prepared for any new confrontation,” Araghchi said, adding that Israel would face “another defeat” if hostilities resumed.
He confirmed that some Iranian nuclear sites had been damaged during the war but said the country’s enrichment technology remained intact.
“The nuclear materials are still at the bombed facilities, and our programme continues without interruption,” he said.
Iran suspended full cooperation with the IAEA following the June war with Israel and the United States, during which several of its nuclear facilities were hit.
