Tehran States It Could Return to American Nuclear Negotiations if Approached with 'Respect' and 'Honor'
Iran is ready to reinitiate nuclear negotiations with Washington on condition that it is treated with "dignity" and "honor", Iran's foreign minister has declared.
Abbas Araghchi declared solely negotiations was effective, and shared fresh requests had come from intermediaries to restart negotiations with the US government. He claimed Iran possessed no secret atomic facilities, and Iran was not yet able to authorize the UN nuclear inspectorate to access bombed nuclear sites for protective measures.
Navigating a Difficult Path
Araghchi is treading a complex path since Iran does not want be perceived to be proceeding from a position of disadvantage, and he insisted repeatedly that Iran had come out stronger in military terms and mentally from the coordinated strike on its atomic facilities in June.
He was speaking at a defense forum in Tehran where he restated that Iran had "a fundamental entitlement to process nuclear material within its borders that it will never give up" – the key factor of the impasse in the previous talks.
Previous Negotiations Abruptly Terminated
The earlier sessions of discussions between the United States and Iran were brought to an abrupt and acrimonious end on 12 June when the Israeli government, with Washington's assistance, attacked Iranian nuclear sites in a 12-day war that concluded with the American leader claiming the sites had been obliterated. Afterward, EU nations used their right to reimpose global restrictions, but Iran maintains they have not had a significant effect.
Ideal Resolution Offered
Iranian officials claimed they felt they had achieved a "ideal resolution" to the uranium processing matter in prior discussions, when it was agreed an Iran-based consortium with Washington's engagement could process nuclear material. Each party would have been able to declare success since domestic enrichment would have remained and the US could be certain that Iran's atomic project was exclusively peaceful.
It had not been decided in the discussions that American atomic experts could operate within Iranian territory, but that was a reasonable assumption of the consortium proposal. Diplomats stated repeatedly they had secured an understanding with Washington's diplomat the American negotiator only for the arrangement to collapse due to "opponents in the US".
Current Position
Tehran representatives stated the partnership proposal was now off the table, but it seems very probable the suggestion could be resurrected in various formats if discussions restart.
The US president recently said he had been getting signals that Iran desired to resume discussions, but privately Iran's diplomats say they are not yet receiving clear proposals from Washington either explicitly or from key regional mediators, such as Qatar, the Egyptian leadership, Oman and the Saudi kingdom. The Iran's state department has been charged of passivity in the wake of Trump's direct instinctive approach, but Tehran says diplomacy is not part of a spectacle.
Diplomatic Stance
In his address to the conference, designed to paint the US as a controlling nation that exploits the notion of global regulations, Araghchi stated the two-week conflict demonstrated the dispute could not be resolved by military means. He asserted the assaults began with a US demand for an total Iran submission and concluded with an absolute demand for a truce.
Iran is convinced the opening assaults from Tel Aviv were executed with total Washington understanding and collaboration, making faith difficult to reestablish.
Dialogue Remains the Ultimate Solution
Araghchi declared: "Tehran was not the one that had abandoned negotiations; it was America and the western countries that had always attempted to dictate their will during the talks. Negotiations can still be alive and stays the ultimate answer to settle disputes, but its standards, guidelines and tenets must be respected."
"In case they address to the Iranian people with the language of dignity and honor, they will get a response in the equivalent tone."
Recovery and Reconstruction
In what is characterized by Iran's diplomats as the struggle of restoration and recovery, the foreign minister claimed he was confident Iran's military capacities "are much stronger than before 13 or 14 June of this year. All our capabilities have been reestablished. We learned multiple understandings from this war; we have come to know our internal vulnerabilities and the vulnerabilities of the enemy."
He added: "We managed to survive this conflict. Our nuclear technology, which they planned to obliterate, continues to exist. The sites and equipment, if damaged, will be rebuilt; what is crucial is the will of the citizens of Tehran and then the social solidarity that they sought to undermine, but were unable to shatter. The Iranian people have become stronger, more integrated, and more supportive of the government and the state in the face of this attack."