Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi affirmed that his country will not link the economy to negotiations for a nuclear agreement, stressing Tehran's efforts to thwart the impact of sanctions on the country.
"We have enough will and are serious about negotiations, and we proved that in Vienna," Raisi said in a television interview.
For his part, an Iranian Foreign Ministry official said that reviving the nuclear agreement depends on the Europeans showing will and flexibility, stressing that Washington's unwillingness to lift all sanctions on Tehran is a major obstacle to negotiations.
The Iranian official accused Israel of trying to disrupt the talks, by launching what he described as psychological warfare and by spreading false news, in order to negatively affect the atmosphere of negotiations.
In turn, Gholamhossein Esmaili, director of the Iranian president's office, stressed that his country is completely serious about the Vienna negotiations, and that its ultimate goal in the negotiations is to abolish sanctions while preserving the country's dignity.
Western anxiety
Today, Sunday, IRNA quoted Esmaili as saying that "we are completely serious about the Vienna negotiations, and our final goal in the negotiations with the 4+1 group is the abolition of sanctions... We were ready to continue negotiations, but the other parties saw that they needed to." Heading to their capitals to discuss the issues presented.
Indirect talks between the United States and Iran to revive the Iranian nuclear deal stopped the day before yesterday, Friday, and will continue next week, and European officials expressed their dismay at the number of demands made by the Iranian government.
For his part, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett stressed the need for Iran to pay the price for violating the nuclear agreement, calling on the major powers in Vienna to adhere to what he described as a firm approach against Iran.
In an interview with Israel Radio, Deputy Israeli Defense Minister Alon Schuster hinted at an Israeli role in the explosion that occurred yesterday, Saturday, in the Natanz area, without confirming it definitively.
Schuster said he could not determine what was damaged at the Iranian facility near Natanz.
Schuster added that Israel has used force against its enemies before, and is convinced that in extreme cases there is a necessity to use military means, stressing that Iran is a problem for the whole world, not only for Israel.