Mohammad Eslami (Getty Images)
Iran’s top nuclear official said Tuesday that the Islamic Republic is “on a par with developed countries in nuclear science and technology” despite outside opposition.
Mohammad Eslami, head of Iran’s atomic energy agency, made the remarks at a National Standard Day ceremony in Tehran, Iranian broadcaster Press TV reported.
Eslami credited Iranian specialists with developing domestic replacements for industrial control systems and instruments after U.S. and Israeli attacks struck refineries, petrochemical plants, and steel mills. Foreign suppliers had refused to provide or repair the equipment, the Tehran Times reported.
The strikes came during a war that began Feb. 28 with joint U.S.-Israeli air and missile attacks on Iranian military sites. Eslami credited a younger generation for the work, saying professionals in Iran’s nuclear field average about 35 years old.
Eslami also rejected demands that Iran abandon uranium enrichment, the process of concentrating uranium for reactor fuel or, at higher levels, for nuclear weapons. Last week, he said, “We will not abandon it in any way.”
Iran has enriched uranium to 60% purity, far above civilian needs and approaching the roughly 90% used in nuclear weapons. Tehran denies seeking a bomb, while Washington has demanded limits on Iran’s enrichment capacity.
International verification efforts have stalled.
The International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N. nuclear watchdog, warned in its September quarterly report that its inability to verify Iran’s nuclear material raised concerns about nuclear proliferation. Iran had not allowed inspectors into the bombed sites as of the report.
Hard-line lawmakers filed a motion last week to impeach Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi over his Sept. 22 meeting in New York with U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff. The Qatar-brokered talks focused on reopening the Strait of Hormuz, a key Persian Gulf shipping route.
The lawmakers accused Araghchi of acting without approval from Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei.
Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, disputed the accusation, saying Araghchi had been assigned to convey Iran’s conditions to intermediaries.
The motion has not reached parliament’s agenda.
Former Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif also faced criticism after a video surfaced Saturday showing him arguing in May 2025 that “nuclear weapons do not create deterrence,” The National reported.
The hard-line newspaper Kayhan accused Zarif of undermining national security, while the Tasnim news agency demanded an apology.
Iran and the United States have exchanged proposals in recent weeks to end the war and reopen the strait. President Donald Trump has said the U.S. will not launch an attack before the November midterm elections.
Reuters contributed to this report.
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