Donald Trump leaves door open for Iran’s civilian nuclear programme

President Donald Trump on Wednesday signalled that the United States could accept a civilian nuclear programme in Iran under certain circumstances offering one of his clearest indications yet of how Washington may approach the next phase of negotiations with TehranAt a press conference after the G7 summit in France Trump reiterated that Iran would never be allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon but suggested there could be room for discussion on nuclear activities intended for civilian purposesAsked whether Iran could continue a civilian nuclear programme if it complied with the new agreement Trump acknowledged the complexity of the issueldquoWell Ive said to them always I say look you have probably the third largest oil reserves in the world what the hell do you need nuclear forrdquo Trump saidldquoYou need nuclear for some electricityrdquoTrump said he has long questioned Tehrans argument that its nuclear programme is intended solely for civilian energy production because of the countrys vast oil and gas reservesldquoSo Ive always felt that way so weve been pretty tough on thatrdquo he saidAt the same time the President appeared to recognise the challenge of denying Iran capabilities that other countries in the region possessldquoYou know it is a little hard though when you say that somebody wants it other people have it other adjoining states have it and youre not letting them have it for purposes of electricity and things like thatrdquo Trump saidldquoIts always a little tough You have to use a little common senserdquoThe comments provide a glimpse into the issues likely to dominate negotiations on a final agreement between Washington and Tehran following the memorandum of understanding announced this weekUnder the framework disclosed by senior US officials Iran has agreed that it ldquoshall not procure or develop nuclear weaponsrdquo while both sides negotiate a comprehensive settlement within 60 daysThe memorandum between the US and Iran also calls for addressing Irans enriched nuclear material and establishing verification measures under international supervisionSenior US officials have stressed that preventing Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon remains the administrations central objectiveOne senior US official said the administrations goal is to secure the removal of enriched nuclear material curb Irans enrichment capabilities and establish a verification regime capable of detecting violationsTrump also made clear that any future agreement would ultimately be backed by the threat of military forceldquoIf its not permanent we will bomb themrdquo he said when asked how the agreement would prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weaponldquoI dont think that theyre going to veer from the agreementrdquoThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever