Tehran Says It Might Return to US Atomic Discussions if Approached with 'Respect' and 'Honor'
Tehran is willing to reinitiate atomic discussions with Washington provided that it is approached with "dignity" and "honor", Iran's foreign minister has stated.
Abbas Araghchi stated exclusively dialogue produced results, and shared new appeals had come from mediators to resume negotiations with the American leadership. He claimed Iran did not have undeclared nuclear sites, and Iran could not yet permit the International Atomic Energy Agency to visit attacked atomic facilities for safety concerns.
Walking a Difficult Route
The foreign minister is treading a challenging route since Iran does not want appear to be acting from a position of vulnerability, and he emphatically stated that Iran had emerged more resilient militarily and emotionally from the Israeli-US attack on its nuclear sites in June.
He was addressing at a defense forum in Tehran where he restated that Iran had "a fundamental entitlement to refine atomic fuel domestically that it will perpetually retain" – the key factor of the stalemate in the earlier negotiations.
Prior Negotiations Suddenly Terminated
The prior phases of discussions between the US and Iran were brought to an abrupt and acrimonious end on 12 June when the Israeli government, with US support, targeted Tehran's atomic facilities in a fortnight-long engagement that concluded with Donald Trump declaring the sites had been obliterated. Afterward, Western states employed their privilege to restore UN-wide sanctions, but Iran maintains they have not had a major impact.
Magic Solution Offered
Iran's diplomats claimed they felt they had achieved a "perfect agreement" to the nuclear fuel concern in earlier negotiations, when it was decided an domestic cooperative with US participation could process nuclear material. Each party would have been able to assert triumph since local refinement would have continued and the US could be confident that Iran's atomic project was exclusively peaceful.
It had not been agreed in the negotiations that American atomic experts could function on Iranian soil, but that was a natural consequence of the cooperative offer. Officials asserted on multiple occasions they had secured an understanding with Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff only for the deal to disintegrate due to "opponents in the US".
Current Position
Iran's diplomats stated the consortium offer was now withdrawn, but it seems very probable the proposal could be revived in some form if discussions resume.
The US president last week stated he had been obtaining communications that Iran desired to restart talks, but privately Iranian officials say they are not yet obtaining consistent overtures from the United States either directly or from important Middle Eastern intermediaries, such as Qatar, the Egyptian leadership, Oman and Saudi Arabia. The Iran's state department has been criticized of inactivity in the wake of the US president's straightforward manner, but Iran asserts diplomacy is not part of a show.
Political Position
In his address to the conference, designed to depict the US as a controlling nation that misuses the idea of global regulations, the foreign minister said the fortnight-long engagement demonstrated the conflict could not be ended by armed force. He stated the attacks commenced with a Washington's ultimatum for an unconditional Iranian surrender and ended with an unconditional call for a halt to hostilities.
Iran is convinced the initial Israeli attacks were mounted with complete American awareness and coordination, making confidence challenging to reestablish.
Dialogue Remains the Final Solution
Araghchi stated: "It was not Iran that had abandoned negotiations; it was America and the Western nations that had repeatedly sought to enforce their desires during the talks. Negotiations can still be viable and stays the final resolution to resolve disagreements, but its criteria, regulations and tenets must be adhered to."
"If they address to the Iranian people with the language of respect and honor, they will obtain a reply in the equivalent tone."
Recovery and Rebuilding
In what is characterized by Iranian officials as the battle of repair and rebuilding, the foreign minister said he was confident Iran's security strengths "are considerably enhanced than before 13 or 14 June of this year. Every aspect of our defense have been rebuilt. We acquired numerous insights from this conflict; we have identified our internal vulnerabilities and the shortcomings of the adversary."
He stated: "We effectively endured this engagement. Our nuclear technology, which they aimed to eliminate, continues to exist. The sites and equipment, if destroyed, will be reconstructed; what is crucial is the will of the nation of Iran and then the social solidarity that they aimed at, but failed to shatter. The Iranian people have grown stronger, more integrated, and more endorsing of the administration and the nation in the wake of this assault."