US senator from Arkansas Tom Cotton on Thursday claimed that defence secretary Pete Hegseth had confirmed that Iran was working towards building a nuclear weapon amid a stalled nuclear deal between the countries.
In a post on X, Tom Cotton said, “Today @SecDef confirmed that Iran’s terrorist regime is actively working towards a nuclear weapon. For the sake of our national security, the security of our allies, and millions of civilians in the region this cannot be allowed to happen.”
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The US and Iran have been negotiating a nuclear deal for around two months, with Oman mediating. They have held five rounds of talks.
US President Donald Trump, after being elected for his second term, had said he wants a deal that curbs Iran’s atomic activities and that the US could strike Iran if the talks break down.
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{{/usCountry}}Israel, which believes a nuclear-armed Iran would pose an existential threat has also threatened to attack Tehran, with or without US help.
Iran has long denied having plans to build a nuclear weapon, although it has been enriching uranium to a higher point than required for civilian purposes, leading to wariness from the US and other western countries.
Earlier this week, Trump said he was "much less confident of a deal being made. “They seem to be delaying, and I think that’s a shame," he told the New York Post.
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Iran has warned of retaliation against US military assets in the Middle East if the talks collapse and the Islamic Republic is attacked.
“I sincerely hope it won’t come to that and that the talks reach a resolution,” Iran’s Defense Minister Aziz Nasirzadeh said.
“But if they don’t, and conflict is imposed on us, the other side will undoubtedly suffer greater losses. We will target all US bases in host countries without hesitation," he added.