‘US military build-up does not scare us’ – Iran will not give up enrichment, even if ‘war imposed on us,’ FM Araghchi says

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said that the Islamic Republic will not accept a deal that requires the regime to give up nuclear enrichment. 

In a weekend interview with Qatari news agency Al-Jazeera, Araghchi again said that enrichment is Iran’s “inalienable right and must continue.” 

Speaking at the National Congress on Foreign Policy in Tehran on Sunday, Araghchi repeated the statement, saying Iran will never agree to “zero enrichment.” 

"Zero enrichment can never be accepted by us. Hence, we need to focus on discussions that accept enrichment inside Iran while building trust that enrichment is and will stay for peaceful purposes," he said. “We are ready to reach a reassuring agreement on enrichment. The Iranian nuclear case will only be resolved through negotiations.” 

Key points from remarks by Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi today:

• Enrichment is non negotiable
Iran will not give up uranium enrichment under any circumstances, including war.

• No retreat under pressure, backing down is surrender.

• Iran doubts U.S. intent due to… pic.twitter.com/ODdcZmuiCk

— Open Source Intel (@Osint613) February 8, 2026

“Why do we insist on enrichment and refuse to abandon it? Because no one has the right to tell us what we cannot have. This is our legal right,” the foreign minister added. 

Later in his speech, Araghchi reiterated his stance, saying, “Enrichment is a scientific achievement reached by our scientists. The blood of our scientists has been shed for it, and we fought a 12-day war over it. It has become a source of national pride and is non-negotiable. We will not relinquish the Iranian people’s right to enrichment.” 

Tehran claims it has halted enrichment activity and says its nuclear program is solely for peaceful purposes. However, satellite imagery has shown signs of renewed construction at several nuclear sites struck by Israel and the United States during the 12-day Israel-Iran war last June.

Reuters cited an unnamed diplomat who said Tehran is open to discussing the "level and purity" of enrichment, as well as other arrangements, as long as it is allowed to enrich uranium on its soil and would be granted sanctions relief in addition to military de-escalation. 

The foreign minister also repeated his statements to Al-Jazeera regarding the country’s ballistic missile program, which he said was not on the agenda of the negotiations. 

“The missile issue and regional issues [a reference to Iran’s support for proxies such as Hezbollah, the Houthis, and Hamas] have not been on the agenda and are not on the agenda,” Araghchi said, adding that the regime is not bothered by the U.S. military buildup in the region.

“Military posturing does not intimidate us,” Araghchi said. “We are people of diplomacy, but we are also people of war – not in the sense that we seek conflict, but that we are fully prepared to defend ourselves against any aggression.” 

In his Saturday interview with Al-Jazeera, Araghchi warned that any strike on Iran would be met with retaliation by the Islamic Republic. 

"It would not be possible to attack American soil, but we will target their bases in the region,” he said.

“We will not attack neighboring countries; rather, we will target U.S. bases stationed in them. There is a big difference between the two.”

During his speech in Tehran, Araghchi described the nation's inflexible stance in the negotiations as its “atomic bomb.” 

“I believe the secret of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s power lies in its ability to stand against bullying, domination and pressures from others," Araghchi said. "They fear our atomic bomb, while we are not pursuing an atomic bomb. Our atomic bomb is the power to say no to the great powers. The secret of the Islamic Republic’s power is in the power to say no to the powers.”