Iran’s nuclear negotiations have long served to buy time for building atomic weapons, prominent Tehran-based political commentator Sadegh Zibakalam said in a debate published on Tuesday.
Zibakalam said the Islamic Republic had hidden behind anti-US and anti-Israel slogans while deceiving the world about its nuclear goals. “You have shouted death to America all your life and done all you could to destroy Israel. Your talks were fake. You were wasting time. You are after a nuclear weapon,” he said in the program released by the ON news media.
“If you take away their hostility toward America, they have nothing to tell the people,” he said.
Tehran repeats call for peaceful deal
His comments came a day after a senior Iranian diplomat said Tehran still wanted a “peaceful” nuclear agreement with the United States but would not compromise its national security. The deputy foreign minister accused Washington of sending “contradictory messages” through mediators and betraying diplomacy.
The two countries held five rounds of talks before a 12-day war in June between Iran and Israel, during which US forces struck Iranian nuclear sites. President Donald Trump said in October that Washington’s “hand of friendship” remained open if Tehran was ready to make a deal.
Zibakalam, who has faced several court cases and jail terms for his outspoken remarks, was charged in January after a speech in Doha angered authorities. Judiciary media said he was sentenced to prison for “propaganda against the system” and “spreading false information.”
Former senior official Mohammad Javad Larijani meanwhile said Iran can build a nuclear bomb in less than two weeks but has chosen not to. He said Tehran’s nuclear doctrine treats the capability as deterrence while forbidding weaponization under the guidance of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
