Tehran Says It Might Rejoin US Nuclear Discussions if Handled with 'Dignity' and 'Respect'
Tehran is prepared to restart nuclear talks with Washington as long as it is approached with "dignity" and "honor", Tehran's top diplomat has declared.
Abbas Araghchi stated exclusively dialogue was effective, and disclosed new appeals had been made by mediators to reopen talks with the Trump administration. He asserted Iran had zero secret atomic facilities, and Iran could not yet permit the UN nuclear inspectorate to inspect attacked atomic facilities for security reasons.
Navigating a Complex Path
Araghchi is walking a complex path since Iran aims to avoid be perceived to be operating from a position of weakness, and he emphatically stated that Iran had arisen more resilient defensively and mentally from the joint assault on its atomic facilities in June.
He was speaking at a strategic meeting in Tehran where he restated that Iran had "a fundamental entitlement to enrich uranium within its borders that it will never give up" – the main reason of the deadlock in the prior discussions.
Earlier Discussions Abruptly Terminated
The earlier sessions of talks between the US and Iran were concluded unexpectedly and acrimonious end on 12 June when the Israeli government, with US support, struck Tehran's atomic facilities in a 12-day war that culminated with the American leader claiming the facilities had been eliminated. Afterward, Western states exercised their authority to restore UN-wide sanctions, but Iran maintains they have not had a major impact.
Ideal Resolution Suggested
Iranian officials said they felt they had achieved a "perfect agreement" to the enrichment issue in prior discussions, when it was agreed an Iran-based consortium with American involvement could process nuclear material. Both sides would have been able to claim victory since local refinement would have continued and the US could be certain that Iran's enrichment initiative was exclusively peaceful.
It had not been settled in the talks that American atomic experts could operate inside Iran, but that was a natural consequence of the cooperative offer. Officials asserted on multiple occasions they had achieved a deal with the US representative Steve Witkoff only for the arrangement to disintegrate due to "opponents in the US".
Existing Status
Iran's diplomats stated the partnership proposal was now no longer available, but it seems very probable the proposal could be resurrected in some form if talks resume.
The American leader last week claimed he had been getting signals that Iran desired to restart talks, but confidentially Iran's diplomats state they are not yet obtaining consistent overtures from America either explicitly or from significant local go-betweens, such as Qatar, the Egyptian leadership, the Omani authorities and the Saudi kingdom. The Tehran's diplomatic corps has been criticized of inactivity in the face of Trump's direct instinctive approach, but Iran says dialogue is not part of a show.
Diplomatic Position
In his remarks to the conference, aimed to paint the US as a controlling nation that misuses the concept of worldwide standards, the foreign minister said the two-week conflict revealed the conflict could not be ended by combat operations. He said the assaults began with a American requirement for an unconditional Iranian surrender and concluded with an complete request for a truce.
Iran is assured the initial Israeli attacks were executed with complete American awareness and cooperation, making trust hard to rebuild.
Diplomacy Remains the Primary Resolution
The foreign minister stated: "It was not Iran that had fled diplomacy; it was the United States and the western countries that had consistently attempted to dictate their desires during the negotiations. Diplomacy can still be viable and stays the ultimate resolution to address disputes, but its criteria, rules and tenets must be followed."
"Provided that they speak to the citizens of Tehran with the language of dignity and respect, they will receive a reply in the identical language."
Restoration and Reconstruction
In what is portrayed by Iranian officials as the conflict of recovery and reconstruction, the foreign minister stated he was assured Iran's security strengths "are considerably enhanced than before 13 or 14 June of this year. Every aspect of our defense have been restored. We learned multiple understandings from this conflict; we have discovered our own weaknesses and the shortcomings of the adversary."
He added: "We effectively endured this conflict. Our atomic expertise, which they planned to destroy, remains in place. The sites and machinery, if eliminated, will be restored; what is crucial is the determination of the Iranian people and then the national cohesion that they aimed at, but failed to shatter. The nation of Iran have become more resilient, more integrated, and more endorsing of the government and the country in the aftermath of this assault."