🔗 Share this article

Iran is prepared to reinitiate atomic talks with the United States on condition that it is treated with "dignity" and "respect", Iran's top diplomat has stated.

The Iranian diplomat stated solely negotiations worked, and disclosed fresh requests had originated from intermediaries to resume discussions with the Trump administration. He claimed Iran had zero undeclared nuclear sites, and Iran could not yet allow the global atomic watchdog to access bombed nuclear sites for protective measures.

Navigating a Challenging Path

The foreign minister is walking a challenging course since Iran aims to avoid be seen to be operating from a situation of weakness, and he insisted repeatedly that Iran had come out more resilient defensively and psychologically from the joint assault on its atomic facilities in June.

He was talking at a defense forum in Tehran where he reiterated that Iran had "a fundamental entitlement to enrich uranium on home soil that it will never give up" – the main reason of the stalemate in the earlier negotiations.

Earlier Discussions Abruptly Ended

The previous five rounds of negotiations between the US and Iran were brought to an abrupt and hostile termination on 12 June when Israel, with Washington's assistance, targeted Iranian nuclear sites in a two-week conflict that ended with the US president asserting the sites had been eliminated. Afterward, Western states employed their right to reinstate international penalties, but Iran maintains they have not had a significant effect.

Perfect Agreement Proposed

Iranian officials said they felt they had attained a "perfect agreement" to the nuclear fuel concern in prior discussions, when it was settled an domestic cooperative with US participation could process nuclear material. Each party would have been able to claim victory since domestic enrichment would have persisted and the US could be confident that Iran's nuclear programme was solely for peaceful purposes.

It had not been settled in the discussions that American atomic experts could operate on Iranian soil, but that was a natural consequence of the cooperative offer. Diplomats asserted three times they had reached agreement with Washington's diplomat Steve Witkoff only for the agreement to disintegrate due to "opponents in the US".

Existing Situation

Iran's diplomats declared the consortium offer was now no longer available, but it seems very probable the proposal could be revived in certain ways if negotiations restart.

Trump in recent days stated he had been obtaining communications that Iran wanted to restart talks, but in private Tehran representatives claim they are not yet getting consistent overtures from Washington either straightforwardly or from significant local go-betweens, such as Qatar, Egypt, Oman and Saudi Arabia. The Tehran's diplomatic corps has been criticized of non-responsiveness in the aftermath of Washington's unmediated tactics, but Tehran asserts dialogue is not part of a show.

Negotiating Standpoint

In his address to the gathering, intended to paint the US as a dominant force that exploits the idea of international law, the foreign minister declared the two-week conflict demonstrated the clash could not be settled by combat operations. He stated the strikes commenced with a US demand for an complete Tehran capitulation and culminated with an unconditional call for a truce.

Iran is assured the opening assaults from Tel Aviv were executed with full US knowledge and collaboration, making faith difficult to restore.

Dialogue Remains the Ultimate Answer

The foreign minister declared: "It was not Iran that had deserted diplomacy; it was the United States and the Western nations that had repeatedly sought to impose their demands during the talks. Negotiations can still be alive and stays the final solution to settle disputes, but its requirements, rules and fundamentals must be adhered to."

"Provided that they address to the nation of Iran with the tone of dignity and honor, they will receive a response in the identical tone."

Restoration and Rebuilding

In what is portrayed by Iranian officials as the struggle of restoration and recovery, Araghchi said he was confident Iran's military capacities "are much stronger than preceding 13 or 14 June of this year. Our entire military infrastructure have been rebuilt. We gained multiple understandings from this conflict; we have come to know our internal vulnerabilities and the vulnerabilities of the opponent."

He added: "We successfully passed this war. Our enrichment knowledge, which they planned to obliterate, remains in place. The sites and machinery, if eliminated, will be rebuilt; what is essential is the resolve of the citizens of Tehran and then the social solidarity that they targeted, but failed to break. The nation of Iran have grown stronger, more integrated, and more endorsing of the administration and the country in the aftermath of this assault."