Iran vows to enrich uranium 'more than before' if nuclear deal fails

If negotiations fail over the nuclear deal, the Islamic Republic will enrich uranium "more than before... in the next weeks".

Iran’s president has warned the country could start enriching uranium more than ever in the coming weeks, if negotiations fail with countries remaining in the nuclear deal.

President Hassan Rouhani made the statement immediately after Donald Trump said he was pulling the US out of the deal.

"Therefore, I am announcing today that the United States will withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal." pic.twitter.com/hvnlrkJAQD

— The White House 45 Archived (@WhiteHouse45) May 8, 2018

Mr Rouhani spoke live on Iranian state television. He said he would send Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif to countries remaining in the accord.

He said: “I have ordered Iran’s atomic organisation that whenever it is needed, we will start enriching uranium more than before.”

He said Iran would start this “in the next weeks”.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called Mr Trump’s decision a “historic move”.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed Donald Trump’s move (Petros Karadjias/AP)

Mr Netanyahu is a leading critic of the deal, saying it did not contain sufficient safeguards to prevent Iran from reaching nuclear-weapons capability or address Iran’s other activities across the region.

He said Iran’s aggression has grown since the deal, especially in Syria, where he says it is “trying to establish military bases to attack Israel”.

Earlier, Israel’s military said forces were on high alert and ordered bomb shelters open in the Golan Heights after spotting “irregular activity of Iranian forces in Syria”.

- Press Association