Iran has hinted that it may change its nuclear doctrine should the war between Israel and Hamas escalate. The comment, made by an Iranian official, who is an adviser to the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has left some people wondering whether Tehran’s previous statements about “peaceful nuclear use” and “no plan to use or develop nuclear weapons” may now be over.
Speaking to a local news network, Iran’s Student News Network, on Thursday, Kamal Kharrazi has stated Iran’s policy of having no plans to build a nuclear bomb but issued a threat to Israel by suggesting it might change its nuclear doctrine soon.
“We have no decision to build a nuclear bomb, but should Iran’s existence be threatened, there will be no choice but to change our military doctrine.”
“Recently, the military officials also announced that if Israel wants to attack nuclear facilities, it is possible and imaginable to revise Iran’s nuclear doctrine and policies and divert from the previous declaration considerations,” he said.
Tensions between Iran and Israel have escalated as Tehran launched a direct attack on Tel Aviv after Israel bombed its embassy in Damascus on April 1 killing senior IRGC officials. Iran then attacked Israel with a bombing barrage of 300 drones and missiles. No one was reported killed. Most of the attacks were targeted at Israel’s Nevatim airbase.
The statement comes after IAEA chief Rafael Grossi’s visit to the country in over a month. Grossi has expressed frustration over Iran’s alleged lack of cooperation, highlighting the urgency for concrete measures to address outstanding concerns regarding Iran’s nuclear activities.
Tweeting on X on May 6, he said that he had held meetings with Iranian foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and Ali Bagheri Kani, the Iranian diplomat who has conducted talks with world powers over Iran’s nuclear programme.
“With @IRIMFA_EN @Amirabdolahian and @Bagheri_Kani, I proposed a set of concrete practical measures for the revitalization of the 4 March 2023 Joint Statement with aim of restoring process of confidence building and increasing transparency. Last year, Iran made commitments to assist in investigating uranium particles found at undeclared sites and reinstall monitoring equipment. However, the IAEA reports indicate that these assurances have not resulted in significant advancements,” Grossi tweeted on X on May 6 this year.
Officials said that during discussions, both sides acknowledged the 2023 agreement as a potential framework for cooperation. In March 2023, both the IAEA and Iran had issued a joint statement where Iran had agreed on a “voluntary basis” to allow inspection of its nuclear sites and reinstall cameras for inspection at some of these sites. But officials say implementation has been slow especially because of Iran’s concerns over Israel.
(Reuters and other agencies)
