Tehran: Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian stated that Iran is open to inspections of its nuclear facilities but will not tolerate coercion.
He made the remarks on Saturday during a meeting with Kazakhstan's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Murat Nurtleu in Tehran. The statement, published on his office's website, comes amid ongoing indirect nuclear negotiations between Tehran and Washington.
He said that Iran's nuclear activities were completely "transparent," and the International Atomic Energy Agency had confirmed it repeatedly, Xinhua news agency reported.
"As we are ready for inspections, we consider as unacceptable any deprivation of nations of knowledge, technology and scientific achievements," he said, adding that Iran was always ready to listen to logical discourse but would never accept "coercion and bullying."
The Kazakh foreign minister, for his part, expressed his country's respect for Iran's "principled and logical" positions on peaceful nuclear activities.
Nurtleu delivered a written message from President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, expressing hopes that it would "open a new chapter" in bilateral relations.
According to an official statement, both sides agreed to strengthen cooperation across various sectors.
Nurtleu arrived in Tehran on Saturday morning, where he was welcomed by Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi, the official news agency IRNA reported. Later in the day, the two leaders discussed bilateral and regional issues, signing a memorandum of understanding on diplomatic archive cooperation.
Meanwhile, Iran and the United States have been engaged in five rounds of Oman-mediated indirect negotiations since April, focusing on Tehran’s nuclear program and the lifting of U.S. sanctions.
(inputs from IANS)