Tehran States It May Rejoin American Nuclear Negotiations provided that Treated with 'Respect' and 'Honor'
Tehran is ready to restart nuclear talks with the United States on condition that it is treated with "respect" and "respect", Iran's top diplomat has declared.
The Iranian diplomat said only diplomacy produced results, and revealed new appeals had been made by mediators to reopen negotiations with the American leadership. He asserted Iran possessed no unreported enrichment locations, and Iran could not yet permit the International Atomic Energy Agency to visit struck enrichment centers for protective measures.
Navigating a Complex Route
The foreign minister is treading a difficult course since Iran wishes not to be perceived to be operating from a situation of disadvantage, and he emphatically stated that Iran had come out more powerful defensively and psychologically from the coordinated strike on its atomic facilities in June.
He was speaking at a strategic meeting in Tehran where he reaffirmed that Iran had "a fundamental entitlement to refine atomic fuel domestically that it will always maintain" – the main reason of the stalemate in the prior discussions.
Previous Discussions Unexpectedly Concluded
The prior phases of negotiations between the United States and Iran were brought to an abrupt and bitter end on 12 June when Israel, with American backing, struck Iranian nuclear sites in a fortnight-long engagement that ended with the US president declaring the locations had been eliminated. Afterward, Western states employed their right to restore UN-wide sanctions, but Iran asserts they have not had a major impact.
Magic Solution Suggested
Iran's diplomats said they felt they had achieved a "magic solution" to the enrichment issue in earlier negotiations, when it was settled an domestic cooperative with US participation could process nuclear material. Each party would have been able to declare success since home-based processing would have persisted and the US could be certain that Iran's atomic project was solely for peaceful purposes.
It had not been agreed in the discussions that Washington's technical specialists could operate on Iranian soil, but that was a natural consequence of the cooperative offer. Representatives claimed three times they had reached agreement with Trump's special envoy the American negotiator only for the arrangement to disintegrate due to "opponents in the US".
Current Situation
Tehran representatives stated the cooperative arrangement was now withdrawn, but it seems quite possible the suggestion could be resurrected in some form if negotiations resume.
The US president in recent days stated he had been obtaining communications that Iran sought to resume discussions, but in private Tehran representatives claim they are not yet getting coherent offers from the United States either directly or from important Middle Eastern intermediaries, such as Qatar, Egypt, the Omani authorities and the Saudi kingdom. The Tehran's diplomatic corps has been accused of passivity in the wake of Trump's direct instinctive approach, but Tehran states diplomacy is not part of a show.
Negotiating Stance
In his speech to the gathering, aimed to portray the US as a hegemonic power that exploits the concept of international law, the foreign minister declared the 12-day war showed the dispute could not be ended by armed force. He asserted the attacks started with a American requirement for an unconditional Iranian surrender and ended with an unconditional call for a truce.
Iran is convinced the first strikes by Israel were carried out with complete American awareness and cooperation, making trust hard to reestablish.
Negotiations Remains the Primary Answer
Araghchi stated: "It was not Iran that had deserted diplomacy; it was America and the Western nations that had consistently attempted to impose their will during the discussions. Dialogue can still be alive and continues the ultimate answer to settle disagreements, but its requirements, guidelines and fundamentals must be respected."
"If they talk to the Iranian people with the approach of dignity and honor, they will receive a response in the identical tone."
Recovery and Reconstruction
In what is characterized by Iran's diplomats as the struggle of restoration and reconstruction, Araghchi claimed he was confident Iran's defence capabilities "have significantly improved than preceding 13 or 14 June of this year. Every aspect of our defense have been restored. We learned numerous insights from this conflict; we have identified our personal limitations and the weaknesses of the enemy."
He added: "We managed to survive this engagement. Our atomic expertise, which they aimed to obliterate, continues to exist. The installations and gear, if destroyed, will be rebuilt; what is important is the determination of the citizens of Tehran and then the unity of the country that they aimed at, but did not succeed to destroy. The nation of Iran have become more powerful, more cohesive, and more backing of the leadership and the country in the aftermath of this assault."