{"id":329526,"date":"2025-03-16T10:21:10","date_gmt":"2025-03-16T09:21:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/?p=329526"},"modified":"2025-03-17T12:03:16","modified_gmt":"2025-03-17T11:03:16","slug":"iran-news-iranian-cleric-declares-u-s-cannot-stop-tehran-from-building-nuclear-weapons","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/news\/nuclear\/iran-news-iranian-cleric-declares-u-s-cannot-stop-tehran-from-building-nuclear-weapons\/","title":{"rendered":"Iran News: Iranian Cleric Declares U.S. Cannot Stop Tehran from Building Nuclear Weapons"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Ahmad
Ahmad Mahmoudi, Friday prayer leader in Isfahan, conducting a speech on March 14, 2025<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In a defiant Friday prayer sermon in Isfahan on March 14, Ahmad Mahmoudi, the city\u2019s Friday prayer leader, declared that if Iran decided to develop<\/a> nuclear weapons, neither the United States nor Western powers could stop it. \u201cIf we wanted to have nuclear weapons and build them, not only the Westerners but even America could not stop us,\u201d he proclaimed, reinforcing Tehran\u2019s ongoing strategy of nuclear brinkmanship amid growing international pressure. His remarks come as the UK, France, and Germany (E3) threaten to trigger the UN\u2019s snapback mechanism under Resolution 2231, which could reimpose sanctions on Iran over its nuclear violations.<\/p>\n

Ahmad Mahmoudi also defended the regime’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei\u2019s opposition to negotiations<\/a> with the United States, dismissing calls for renewed diplomacy as misguided. He claimed that certain figures within Iran were pushing the notion of talks due to \u201crecent developments,\u201d but insisted that Khamenei had \u201calready made the position crystal clear multiple times.\u201d Quoting the Quran to justify absolute obedience to the Supreme Leader, he warned that opposing Khamenei\u2019s stance on negotiations amounted to \u201cstraying into grave misguidance.\u201d<\/p>\n

Attempting to project confidence, Mahmoudi mocked Western concerns over Iran\u2019s nuclear program, insisting that the regime had voluntarily chosen not to build nuclear weapons based on \u201creligious principles.\u201d However, he simultaneously emphasized the regime\u2019s technical capability, saying, \u201cWe have already reached 60% uranium enrichment. If we wanted to go further\u2014to 70%, 80%, or even 90%\u2014we could easily do so.\u201d Comparing nuclear development to writing a second line of text after the first, he ridiculed Western attempts to pressure Iran, portraying them as futile.<\/p>\n

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#Iran<\/a> News in Brief
Nasr Hosseini, Friday prayer leader in Yasuj: \u201cWe have National Nuclear Technology Day on Monday, and we must possess this knowledge. If necessary, perhaps we request the esteemed authorities to pave the way for the development of a #nuclearweapon<\/a>.\u201d\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/iqSdIhjc1a<\/a><\/p>\n

— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) April 7, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n