10 Proposals to Withdraw From Nuclear Treaty Amid Iranian Calls to Change Doctrine

Key Facts

Iranian lawmaker Mahmoud Nabavian said he had asked the supreme leader for permission to build an atomic bomb, a call reflecting a rise in nuclear rhetoric inside parliament but not a formal decision to change Tehran’s policy. Nabavian posted the appeal on Thursday evening, October 29, on X, according to an IranWire report published the following day. He said his request came during a gathering in the city of Qom, where attendees supported him and chanted “Allahu Akbar.” IranWire quoted him as saying: “I called for obtaining permission from the supreme leader to build an atomic bomb,” adding that the crowd received the appeal with chants and support. His remarks coincided with broader calls by Iranian lawmakers to withdraw from the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and change the nuclear doctrine.

Iranian Chief of Staff Ali Abdollahi said the armed forces had prepared “a new bank of enemy targets and assets” across a wider geographic range. The statement did not specify the extent of that range, while the Associated Press reported that Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei had called for an update to the list of potential U.S. and Israeli targets. According to the agency, Khamenei said “any type and level of threat” from the U.S. or Israel should be met with an immediate response without geographic limits. His remarks were conveyed during a meeting with military commanders, and he had not appeared publicly since the war began with U.S. and Israeli strikes on February 28, according to the report. The remarks place the expansion of the target list in the context of threats of military retaliation, while the available sources do not include any measure of price movements or a risk premium in markets.

On the parliamentary front, Ibrahim Rezaei, a member of the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, said 10 proposals to withdraw from the treaty had been registered and that withdrawal was under consideration, Al Jazeera reported, citing the Fars news agency. Iranian lawmakers have called for withdrawal from the treaty, and Nabavian also called on Saturday for withdrawal and a change in the nuclear doctrine, according to Al Jazeera. Nabavian had made a similar demand in parliament in November 2024, saying then that Iranians should possess their enemies’ weapons, according to IranWire. But lawmakers’ calls do not mean the government has changed its official position on possessing nuclear weapons. Al Jazeera stressed that the government’s position against seeking nuclear weapons remains in place, and that withdrawal from the treaty does not automatically mean building a nuclear weapon.

At the official level, Iranian National Security Council head Mohsen Rezaei said no decision had been made to change the nuclear doctrine. Tehran has said its nuclear program is peaceful, according to the Associated Press. This comes as Washington seeks to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, the same report said. The contrast between statements by some lawmakers and the government’s declared position is clear: the reported facts include no official announcement changing the doctrine or decision to build a nuclear weapon. Nabavian’s appeal remains a request to the supreme leader for permission, not an announcement that permission had been granted.

Alongside the escalation in rhetoric, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi spoke of a new proposal with mediators that could allow the Strait of Hormuz to be fully reopened within two days. Iranian diplomats are in Qatar for talks, he said, according to the Associated Press. He added that Iran did not plan to meet with U.S. officials, but described recent U.S. efforts toward “broader dialogue” as a positive step. Whether talks would be held directly or indirectly, he said, awaited Washington’s approval of Iran’s conditions. The proposal concerning the strait and the diplomatic talks set out a political track alongside the military statements, while its full reopening remains tied to what Araghchi described as a proposal under discussion.