Tehran Declares It May Return to US Nuclear Talks if Approached with 'Respect' and 'Respect'
Tehran is willing to reinitiate atomic negotiations with Washington on condition that it is handled with "respect" and "honor", Iran's foreign minister has announced.
Abbas Araghchi said exclusively dialogue was effective, and shared fresh requests had been made by intermediaries to restart discussions with the US government. He asserted Iran had zero undeclared nuclear sites, and Iran was not yet able to allow the UN nuclear inspectorate to access struck enrichment centers for safety concerns.
Walking a Challenging Path
The foreign minister is walking a complex route since Iran does not want appear to be proceeding from a position of vulnerability, and he emphatically stated that Iran had arisen stronger militarily and mentally from the joint assault on its atomic facilities in June.
He was speaking at a security conference 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 previous talks.
Earlier Negotiations Unexpectedly Terminated
The previous five rounds of discussions between the United States and Iran were ended suddenly and acrimonious termination on 12 June when Israel, with Washington's assistance, struck Tehran's atomic facilities in a 12-day war that concluded with the American leader declaring the facilities had been obliterated. Subsequently, European countries exercised their authority to restore global restrictions, but Iran asserts they have not had a major impact.
Perfect Agreement Proposed
Iranian officials claimed they felt they had attained a "magic solution" to the enrichment issue in previous talks, when it was decided an Iran-based consortium with US participation could enrich uranium. Each party would have been able to assert triumph since domestic enrichment would have persisted and the US could be certain that Iran's nuclear programme was exclusively peaceful.
It had not been decided in the talks that US nuclear scientists could operate inside Iran, but that was a natural consequence of the consortium proposal. Officials claimed three times they had secured an understanding with the US representative the US official only for the arrangement to fall apart due to "spoilers in Washington".
Existing Status
Iranian officials stated the consortium offer was now off the table, but it seems highly likely the offer could be revived in certain ways if talks restart.
The US president last week stated he had been getting signals that Iran wanted to resume discussions, but privately Iranian officials state they are not yet getting clear proposals from the United States either explicitly or from key regional mediators, such as the Qatari government, Egypt, the Omani authorities and the Saudi kingdom. The Iranian foreign ministry has been charged of passivity in the aftermath of Trump's direct instinctive approach, but Iran states dialogue is not part of a performance.
Negotiating Position
In his speech to the gathering, designed to depict the US as a controlling nation that abuses the notion of global regulations, the foreign minister said the fortnight-long engagement showed the conflict could not be ended by armed force. He asserted the strikes began with a US demand for an unconditional Iranian surrender and culminated with an absolute demand for a truce.
Iran is convinced the initial Israeli attacks were carried out with complete American awareness and coordination, making faith hard to restore.
Negotiations Stays the Ultimate Answer
Araghchi declared: "Tehran was not the one that had abandoned negotiations; it was the United States and the Western nations that had always sought to dictate their will during the talks. Dialogue can still be alive and remains the primary resolution to address conflicts, but its criteria, rules and principles must be respected."
"In case they talk to the citizens of Tehran with the language of respect and respect, they will get a reply in the equivalent tone."
Restoration and Reconstruction
In what is characterized by Iran's diplomats as the conflict of recovery and rebuilding, the foreign minister said he was assured Iran's defence capabilities "are much stronger than prior to 13 or 14 June of this year. Our entire military infrastructure have been restored. We learned numerous insights from this war; we have identified our own weaknesses and the vulnerabilities of the enemy."
He stated: "We managed to survive this conflict. Our enrichment knowledge, which they intended to destroy, remains in place. The installations and gear, if destroyed, will be rebuilt; what is important is the resolve of the nation of Iran and then the national cohesion that they sought to undermine, but did not succeed to break. The citizens of Tehran have become more powerful, more united, and more backing of the administration and the nation in the face of this attack."