Tehran Says It Could Return to US Atomic Discussions if Approached with 'Dignity' and 'Honor'
Iran is ready to reinitiate nuclear discussions with the United States as long as it is approached with "dignity" and "honor", Iran's foreign minister has announced.
The Iranian diplomat declared only diplomacy produced results, and revealed new appeals had come from mediators to resume talks with the American leadership. He claimed Iran had zero secret atomic facilities, and Tehran could not yet allow the global atomic watchdog to visit bombed nuclear sites for safety concerns.
Walking a Difficult Route
The foreign minister is treading a challenging route since Iran does not want appear to be proceeding from a position of vulnerability, and he consistently maintained that Iran had come out stronger defensively and mentally from the Israeli-US attack on its atomic facilities in June.
He was talking at a defense forum in Tehran where he reaffirmed that Iran had "an absolute privilege to refine atomic fuel domestically that it will never give up" – the main reason of the impasse in the previous talks.
Prior Discussions Suddenly Concluded
The previous five rounds of talks between the United States and Iran were ended suddenly and bitter end on 12 June when Israel, with American backing, attacked Tehran's atomic facilities in a two-week conflict that ended with the American leader asserting the locations had been destroyed. Afterward, European countries used their right to reimpose international penalties, but Iran insists they have not had a major impact.
Magic Solution Proposed
Tehran representatives said they felt they had achieved a "magic solution" to the nuclear fuel concern in previous talks, when it was settled an local partnership with American involvement could enrich uranium. Both sides would have been able to declare success since home-based processing would have remained and the US could be assured that Iran's enrichment initiative was exclusively peaceful.
It had not been agreed in the discussions that American atomic experts could function within Iranian territory, but that was a reasonable assumption of the partnership suggestion. Diplomats asserted repeatedly they had secured an understanding with Trump's special envoy the American negotiator only for the agreement to disintegrate due to "spoilers in Washington".
Existing Status
Iranian officials said the cooperative arrangement was now withdrawn, but it seems highly likely the suggestion could be reintroduced in certain ways if talks reopen.
The US president in recent days claimed he had been getting signals that Iran desired to reopen negotiations, but privately Tehran representatives claim they are not yet getting coherent offers from the United States either explicitly or from significant local go-betweens, such as Qatar, Egypt, the Omani authorities and the Saudi kingdom. The Iranian foreign ministry has been accused of inactivity in the face of Trump's direct instinctive approach, but Iran states diplomacy is not part of a performance.
Political Stance
In his speech to the conference, intended to paint the US as a hegemonic power that exploits the notion of global regulations, Araghchi declared the two-week conflict showed the clash could not be settled by military means. He asserted the attacks began with a Washington's ultimatum for an unconditional Iranian surrender and concluded with an complete request for a halt to hostilities.
Iran is convinced the initial Israeli attacks were mounted with total Washington understanding and collaboration, making confidence difficult to restore.
Dialogue Remains the Ultimate Resolution
Araghchi stated: "Tehran was not the one that had abandoned negotiations; it was the United States and the European states that had always tried to impose their demands during the talks. Dialogue can still be viable and continues the primary resolution to address disputes, but its criteria, rules and principles must be adhered to."
"If they speak to the nation of Iran with the language of dignity and respect, they will get a answer in the identical tone."
Recovery and Reconstruction
In what is described by Iranian officials as the struggle of restoration and recovery, the foreign minister stated he was certain Iran's defence capabilities "are considerably enhanced than prior to 13 or 14 June of this year. Our entire military infrastructure have been rebuilt. We gained multiple understandings from this conflict; we have identified our internal vulnerabilities and the shortcomings of the opponent."
He continued: "We successfully passed this war. Our atomic expertise, which they aimed to obliterate, remains in place. The sites and machinery, if damaged, will be rebuilt; what is essential is the resolve of the Iranian people and then the unity of the country that they aimed at, but were unable to shatter. The Iranian people have become more powerful, more cohesive, and more endorsing of the leadership and the country in the face of this attack."