TEHRAN – Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has reiterated Iran’s position on development and use of nuclear weapons, saying as stated by the Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran is categorically opposed to nuclear arms.

“#Iran’s Leader has long made it abundantly clear that nuclear weapons are immoral & contravene Islamic principles,” Zarif said in a post on his Twitter account on Saturday.

“Their development, acquisition, stockpiling & use is thus forbidden. We're categorically opposed to nuclear arms as a religious/moral duty & strategic imperative,” he added.

Ayatollah Khamenei said in remarks on Wednesday that although Iran was able to build nuclear weapons it did not do so because according to Islamic sharia it is absolutely forbidden and there is no reason to waste resources for production and stockpile of such weapons.

“Though we were able to take such a step, based on the decree of the dear Islam we declared it completely haram (religiously banned), therefore there is no reason to incur cost for production and stockpiling of a weapon that its use is absolutely haram,” the Leader stated.

The Islamic Republic of Iran has on numerous occasions voiced its opposition to building nuclear bombs, rejecting Western countries’ ostensible concerns over Tehran’s civilian nuclear program.

Tehran even signed a nuclear agreement with six major powers in 2015, which limited its nuclear program in exchange for permanent lifting of sanctions, which were imposed, in the first place, on the pretext that Iran was near building nuclear weapons. Washington, however, ditched the agreement last year, citing other flimsy pretexts.

On May 8, exactly one year after the U.S. abandoned the deal, Tehran began to partially reduce its commitments to the agreement at bi-monthly intervals.

So far, Iran has taken three major steps in reducing its commitments to the accord.

Ayatollah Khamenei has said Iran will continue to reduce commitments under the deal.

“Reducing nuclear commitments, for which the Atomic Energy Organization is responsible, should continue seriously and precisely as it was announced by the government till it reaches favorable result and it will definitely reach the result,” he said earlier this month.

MH/PA