Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei

Iran`s "inalienable" right to enrichment cannot be undermined by political pressure, says the Foreign Ministry spokesman.

Esmaeil Baghaei said in an interview published on Saturday, "Iran`s right to the peaceful use of nuclear energy is an inherent and inalienable right, and no form of pressure or political stance can undermine this right."

He said Article IV of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) recognizes the right of all signatories to use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.

Baghaei said since Iran`s ratification of the NPT in 1970, the country has adhered to its commitments and, accordingly, placed a premium on the necessity of benefiting from the rights stipulated in the treaty.

However, the Iranian official said, one-sided and political interpretations by certain nuclear-weapon states have raised suspicion even in the peaceful use of nuclear energy.

Iran was among the original signatories of the NPT, signing the treaty on July 1, 1968. The Iranian Parliament ratified the NPT in February 1970, and the treaty entered into force for Iran thereafter.

Under the NPT, Iran is recognized as a non-nuclear-weapon state and agreed not to develop or acquire nuclear weapons, while in return retaining the right to pursue peaceful nuclear energy under international safeguards.

In 1974, Iran also signed a Safeguards Agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), allowing inspections to verify that its nuclear activities remain peaceful.

But Israel has refused to either allow inspections of its nuclear facilities or sign the NPT.

The regime is estimated to possess 200 to 400 nuclear warheads in its arsenal, making it the sole possessor of non-conventional arms in West Asia.

Referring to Iran`s initiative to establish a nuclear-weapon-free zone in West Asia in 1974, Baghaei underscored the "transparency" of the Islamic Republic`s nuclear program.

Iran`s nuclear activities have been under constant surveillance of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) under the Safeguards Agreement, he said.

The Iranian official said the claims regarding the nature of Iran`s nuclear program were mainly a pretext for Iranophobia and the exertion of political pressure.

Baghaei criticized the IAEA`s approach to the United States` attacks - coordinated by Israel - on Iran`s nuclear facilities in June 2025. It was an "unprecedented" move in the history of the Non-Proliferation regime, he said.

The UN nuclear agency should have condemned the attack, he said, but it did not, and "this issue consequently affected relations between Iran and the IAEA."

Regarding Iran`s technical cooperation with the IAEA, Baghaei said inspections of the undamaged facilities are underway.

"However, with regard to the damaged facilities, due to the absence of a specific procedure and safety and security considerations, it is not possible to carry out the normal process."

On June 13, 2025, Israel launched an unprovoked war against Iran. The regime assassinated many high-ranking military commanders, nuclear scientists, and ordinary civilians.

More than a week later, the United States entered the war. Washington bombed three Iranian nuclear facilities in Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan, in a clear violation of international law and the NPT.

On June 24, Iran, through its successful retaliatory operations against both the Israeli regime and the US interests in the region, managed to impose a halt to the illegal assault.

Baghaei`s remarks come amid a new round of indirect talks between Tehran and Washington, which began on February 6 in the Omani capital of Muscat.

Speaking two days after the talks, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian called them a "step forward."

"Our logic in the nuclear issue centers on the rights enshrined in the NPT," he highlighted.