🔗 Share this article

Tehran is prepared to restart atomic discussions with the United States as long as it is handled with "respect" and "honor", Tehran's foreign minister has announced.

The Iranian diplomat stated exclusively dialogue worked, and disclosed new appeals had originated from mediators to restart negotiations with the American leadership. He said Iran had zero undeclared nuclear sites, and Tehran was not yet able to permit the UN nuclear inspectorate to visit attacked atomic facilities for protective measures.

Navigating a Challenging Route

Araghchi is treading a complex route since Iran wishes not to appear to be operating from a situation of weakness, and he consistently maintained that Iran had emerged stronger in military terms and mentally from the joint assault on its enrichment centers in June.

He was addressing at a security conference in Tehran where he restated that Iran had "an absolute privilege to refine atomic fuel within its borders that it will perpetually retain" – the key factor of the impasse in the prior discussions.

Earlier Talks Unexpectedly Terminated

The prior phases of negotiations between the US and Iran were concluded unexpectedly and acrimonious conclusion on 12 June when the Israeli government, with US support, struck Iranian nuclear sites in a 12-day war that concluded with Donald Trump declaring the facilities had been eliminated. Afterward, Western states employed their right to reinstate UN-wide sanctions, but Iran asserts they have not had a substantial consequence.

Ideal Resolution Suggested

Iranian officials claimed they felt they had attained a "perfect agreement" to the enrichment issue in prior discussions, when it was settled an Iran-based consortium with Washington's engagement could enrich uranium. Each party 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 solely for peaceful purposes.

It had not been decided in the negotiations that American atomic experts could operate inside Iran, but that was a natural consequence of the cooperative offer. Representatives stated on multiple occasions they had reached agreement with the US representative the US official only for the agreement to fall apart due to "spoilers in Washington".

Existing Position

Iranian officials said the cooperative arrangement was now no longer available, but it seems highly likely the offer could be resurrected in certain ways if talks reopen.

Trump last week stated he had been receiving messages that Iran sought to restart talks, but confidentially Tehran representatives say they are not yet obtaining consistent overtures from the United States either directly 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 accused of inactivity in the aftermath of Trump's direct instinctive approach, but Tehran says diplomacy is not part of a performance.

Negotiating Standpoint

In his address to the conference, intended to portray the US as a controlling nation that misuses the notion of worldwide standards, the foreign minister said the 12-day war showed the conflict could not be ended by military means. He stated the assaults started with a US demand for an unconditional Iranian surrender and ended with an unconditional call for a truce.

Iran is convinced the first strikes by Israel were mounted with total Washington understanding and collaboration, making trust hard to reestablish.

Diplomacy Remains the Primary Answer

The foreign minister said: "Tehran was not the one that had abandoned dialogue; it was the United States and the Western nations that had consistently sought to enforce their demands during the negotiations. Negotiations can still be alive and remains the ultimate answer to settle disputes, but its standards, guidelines and tenets must be respected."

"Provided that they talk to the Iranian people with the approach of respect and respect, they will get a reply in the same language."

Recovery and Reconstruction

In what is described by Iranian officials as the struggle of restoration and reconstruction, Araghchi claimed he was certain Iran's security strengths "are considerably enhanced than before 13 or 14 June of this year. Our entire military infrastructure have been rebuilt. We acquired many lessons from this engagement; we have identified our personal limitations and the weaknesses of the enemy."

He continued: "We managed to survive this engagement. Our enrichment knowledge, which they aimed to obliterate, continues to exist. The facilities and gear, if destroyed, will be reconstructed; what is important is the will of the citizens of Tehran and then the social solidarity that they aimed at, but did not succeed to destroy. The Iranian people have grown stronger, more integrated, and more supportive of the administration and the nation in the aftermath of this assault."