Tehran States It May Resume American Atomic Talks if Approached with 'Dignity' and 'Respect'
Iran is willing to resume atomic talks with Washington as long as it is treated with "respect" and "honor", Tehran's top diplomat has stated.
Abbas Araghchi declared only diplomacy produced results, and revealed new appeals had been made by intermediaries to reopen discussions with the US government. He asserted Iran possessed no secret atomic facilities, and Tehran could not yet allow the International Atomic Energy Agency to visit bombed nuclear sites for security reasons.
Navigating a Complex Course
Araghchi is treading a complex path since Iran wishes not to be perceived to be acting from a stance of weakness, and he emphatically stated that Iran had emerged more powerful militarily and mentally 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 "an absolute privilege to refine atomic fuel domestically that it will always maintain" – the key factor of the stalemate in the earlier negotiations.
Previous Discussions Suddenly Terminated
The earlier sessions of discussions between the United States and Iran were concluded unexpectedly and bitter termination on 12 June when the Israeli government, with US support, targeted Tehran's atomic facilities in a 12-day war that concluded with the US president asserting the facilities had been eliminated. Afterward, EU nations employed their authority to reinstate global restrictions, but Iran insists they have not had a significant effect.
Perfect Agreement Proposed
Iran's diplomats said they felt they had achieved a "magic solution" to the enrichment issue in prior discussions, when it was decided an local partnership with American involvement could process nuclear material. The two nations would have been able to claim victory since local refinement would have remained and the US could be certain that Iran's atomic project was entirely non-military.
It had not been decided in the negotiations that Washington's technical specialists could work within Iranian territory, but that was a natural consequence of the cooperative offer. Representatives claimed on multiple occasions they had secured an understanding with the US representative Steve Witkoff only for the agreement to disintegrate due to "detractors in America".
Present Status
Iran's diplomats stated the cooperative arrangement was now no longer available, but it seems quite possible the suggestion could be revived in various formats if negotiations reopen.
The American leader recently claimed he had been receiving messages that Iran wanted to reopen negotiations, but confidentially Iranian officials state they are not yet getting coherent offers from Washington either explicitly or from significant local go-betweens, such as Qatar, the Egyptian leadership, the Omani authorities and the Saudi kingdom. The Iran's state department has been criticized of passivity in the face of the US president's straightforward manner, but Iran asserts negotiations is not part of a show.
Diplomatic Standpoint
In his speech to the conference, aimed to depict the US as a controlling nation that misuses the concept of global regulations, the foreign minister stated the fortnight-long engagement demonstrated the conflict could not be ended by armed force. He asserted the attacks began with a American requirement for an complete Tehran capitulation and concluded with an absolute demand for a halt to hostilities.
Iran is certain the first strikes by Israel were carried out with complete American awareness and cooperation, making trust hard to restore.
Dialogue Continues the Primary Answer
Araghchi stated: "It was not Iran that had abandoned dialogue; it was the United States and the western countries that had consistently tried to dictate their desires during the discussions. Diplomacy can still be active and remains the ultimate solution to address disagreements, but its requirements, guidelines and fundamentals must be adhered to."
"In case they talk to the nation of Iran with the language of dignity and honor, they will get a reply in the same approach."
Recovery and Rebuilding
In what is characterized by Iran's diplomats as the battle of restoration and recovery, the foreign minister stated he was assured Iran's military capacities "are much stronger than preceding 13 or 14 June of this year. All our capabilities have been rebuilt. We acquired numerous insights from this engagement; we have identified our internal vulnerabilities and the vulnerabilities of the enemy."
He continued: "We managed to survive this conflict. Our nuclear technology, which they planned to eliminate, continues to exist. The facilities and gear, if eliminated, will be restored; what is essential is the will of the citizens of Tehran and then the unity of the country that they aimed at, but failed to break. The citizens of Tehran have become more resilient, more cohesive, and more backing of the administration and the nation in the aftermath of this assault."