Tehran Says It Could Return to US Atomic Talks if Treated with 'Dignity' and 'Respect'
Tehran is prepared to resume nuclear negotiations with Washington on condition that it is handled with "dignity" and "respect", Tehran's foreign minister has declared.
Abbas Araghchi stated exclusively dialogue was effective, and disclosed recent overtures had originated from go-betweens to resume talks with the American leadership. He claimed Iran did not have unreported enrichment locations, and Iran was not yet able to permit the International Atomic Energy Agency to inspect struck enrichment centers for security reasons.
Navigating a Difficult Path
Araghchi is navigating a challenging course since Iran aims to avoid appear to be operating from a position of vulnerability, and he emphatically stated that Iran had come out more resilient defensively and emotionally from the joint assault on its enrichment centers in June.
He was talking at a defense forum in Tehran where he reiterated that Iran had "an inalienable right to enrich uranium on home soil that it will never give up" – the main reason of the stalemate in the prior discussions.
Prior Talks Abruptly Concluded
The previous five rounds of discussions between the US and Iran were concluded unexpectedly and acrimonious end on 12 June when the Israeli government, with Washington's assistance, struck Iran's enrichment centers in a 12-day war that culminated with the US president claiming the locations had been obliterated. Subsequently, EU nations used their authority to reimpose international penalties, but Iran asserts they have not had a substantial consequence.
Ideal Resolution Proposed
Iran's diplomats said they felt they had reached a "perfect agreement" to the enrichment issue in earlier negotiations, when it was settled an local partnership with US participation could refine atomic fuel. The two nations would have been able to claim victory since domestic enrichment would have remained and the US could be assured that Iran's atomic project was solely for peaceful purposes.
It had not been decided in the discussions that Washington's technical specialists could operate inside Iran, but that was a logical implication of the consortium proposal. Representatives stated on multiple occasions they had reached agreement with Washington's diplomat Steve Witkoff only for the deal to disintegrate due to "detractors in America".
Present Status
Iranian officials said the cooperative arrangement was now off the table, but it seems highly likely the proposal could be resurrected in various formats if discussions resume.
Trump in recent days claimed he had been getting signals that Iran sought to reopen negotiations, but in private Tehran representatives say they are not yet getting coherent offers from the United States either straightforwardly or from key regional mediators, such as Qatar, the Egyptian leadership, the Omani authorities and the Saudi kingdom. The Iranian foreign ministry has been accused of passivity in the aftermath of the US president's straightforward manner, but Iran states dialogue is not part of a show.
Diplomatic Standpoint
In his address to the forum, aimed to portray the US as a controlling nation that abuses the concept of global regulations, the foreign minister declared the fortnight-long engagement revealed the conflict could not be ended by armed force. He asserted the strikes started with a American requirement for an complete Tehran capitulation and concluded with an unconditional call for a ceasefire.
Iran is convinced the opening assaults from Tel Aviv were executed with total Washington understanding and collaboration, making faith challenging to rebuild.
Negotiations Stays the Ultimate Solution
The foreign minister declared: "It was not Iran that had abandoned dialogue; it was America and the western countries that had repeatedly attempted to dictate their demands during the negotiations. Dialogue can still be active and continues the final solution to settle disagreements, but its criteria, regulations and tenets must be followed."
"In case they speak to the citizens of Tehran with the tone of dignity and respect, they will receive a reply in the same language."
Repair and Rebuilding
In what is described by Tehran representatives as the battle of recovery and reconstruction, the foreign minister claimed he was confident Iran's military capacities "are much stronger than before 13 or 14 June of this year. Our entire military infrastructure have been restored. We acquired multiple understandings from this engagement; we have discovered our personal limitations and the shortcomings of the enemy."
He stated: "We managed to survive this war. Our nuclear technology, which they intended to eliminate, continues to exist. The facilities and equipment, if damaged, will be restored; what is crucial is the resolve of the citizens of Tehran and then the social solidarity that they sought to undermine, but failed to destroy. The nation of Iran have developed more resilient, more cohesive, and more backing of the administration and the nation in the wake of this invasion."