Neither sanctions nor sabotage will help US in talks: Iran minister

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani (C) and Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (C-L) arrive for a meeting with the Russian foreign minister in the capital Tehran. PIC/AFP

Iran's foreign minister warned on Tuesday that a weekend attack on its main nuclear enrichment site at Natanz could hurt ongoing negotiations over its tattered atomic deal with world powers.

Those talks are aimed at finding a way for the United States (US) to re-enter the agreement, the goal of which is to limit Iran's enrichment of uranium in exchange relief on sanctions.

The US has insisted it had nothing to do with Sunday's sabotage at the Natanz nuclear facility. Instead, Israel is widely believed to have carried out the assault that damaged centrifuges, though it has not claimed it. But Mohammad Javad Zarif still issued a warning to Washington.

"Americans should know that neither sanctions nor sabotage actions would provide them with an instrument for talks," Zarif said in Tehran alongside visiting Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. "They should know that these actions would only make the situation difficult for them."

Zarif separately renewed his earlier warning to Israel over the sabotage, saying that if Iran determines its archenemy was behind it, "then Israel will get its response and will see what a stupid thing it has done."

Kayhan, the hard-line Tehran newspaper, urged Iran to "walk out of the Vienna talks, suspend all nuclear commitments, retaliate against Israel and identify and dismantle the domestic infiltration network behind the sabotage."

Lavrov arrives to talk with Iranian leaders

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov arrived in Tehran on Tuesday during which he will hold talks with Iranian leaders on topics including how to salvage a nuclear agreement with world powers and the recent cyberattack on a facility. He met his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif and is due to hold talks with President Hassan Rowhani later.