Iran's missile program non-negotiable: FM

TEHRAN - Iran's Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said on Saturday that the country's missile program was "never negotiable" in talks with the United States.

Araghchi made the remarks in an interview with Qatar's Al Jazeera, excerpts of which were shared in Persian on his Telegram channel Saturday.

Commenting on indirect negotiations on Friday between Iran and the United States that focused solely on Iran's nuclear issue, Araghchi said they were a good "start," but there is a long way ahead to build trust.

The United States has, over the past months, been calling on Iran to curb its missile program, a demand Tehran has firmly rejected.

"Missile is never negotiable as it is a defense issue," Araghchi said. "We hope to see this approach in US policy."

The United States and Israel failed to destroy Iran's nuclear capabilities even through bombing the country's atomic facilities last June, he said, asserting Iran's "inalienable" right to continue uranium enrichment on its own soil.

Regarding a potential US attack, Araghchi said it would not be possible for Iran to attack US soil, but it could target American bases in West Asia.

Friday negotiations between the US and Iranian delegations, headed by the US special envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff and Araghchi, marked a renewed diplomatic effort amid heightened tensions between Tehran and Washington in view of the latter's military buildup in the region.