Tehran Says It May Rejoin US Atomic Discussions if Handled with 'Respect' and 'Respect'
Tehran is ready to reinitiate nuclear negotiations with Washington as long as it is handled with "dignity" and "honor", Tehran's top diplomat has stated.
The Iranian diplomat said solely negotiations worked, and revealed recent overtures had come from intermediaries to resume talks with the American leadership. He claimed Iran had zero unreported enrichment locations, and Tehran was not yet able to authorize the UN nuclear inspectorate to access bombed nuclear sites for safety concerns.
Walking a Difficult Path
Araghchi is walking a difficult path since Iran does not want be seen to be operating from a position of vulnerability, and he insisted repeatedly that Iran had emerged more resilient militarily and mentally from the coordinated strike on its enrichment centers in June.
He was speaking at a strategic meeting in Tehran where he reaffirmed that Iran had "an absolute privilege to process nuclear material domestically that it will always maintain" – the primary cause of the deadlock in the prior discussions.
Prior Discussions Abruptly Ended
The previous five rounds of discussions between the US and Iran were brought to an abrupt and bitter conclusion on 12 June when the Israeli government, with American backing, struck Tehran's atomic facilities in a fortnight-long engagement that culminated with Donald Trump declaring the sites had been destroyed. Subsequently, European countries used their authority to reinstate global restrictions, but Iran insists they have not had a major impact.
Ideal Resolution Proposed
Iran's diplomats said they felt they had achieved a "ideal resolution" to the enrichment issue in previous talks, when it was settled an Iran-based consortium with American involvement could enrich uranium. The two nations would have been able to declare success since local refinement would have continued and the US could be assured that Iran's atomic project was solely for peaceful purposes.
It had not been settled in the negotiations that American atomic experts could work within Iranian territory, but that was a logical implication of the consortium proposal. Officials claimed three times they had secured an understanding with the US representative the US official only for the agreement to collapse due to "detractors in America".
Current Status
Tehran representatives said the consortium offer was now off the table, but it seems highly likely the offer could be revived in certain ways if negotiations resume.
The US president last week stated he had been obtaining communications that Iran desired to reopen negotiations, but in private Tehran representatives state they are not yet getting consistent overtures from Washington either directly or from important Middle Eastern intermediaries, such as the Qatari government, Egypt, Oman and Saudi Arabia. The Iranian foreign ministry has been charged of inactivity in the wake of Washington's unmediated tactics, but Tehran states dialogue is not part of a performance.
Political Stance
In his address to the conference, designed to depict the US as a controlling nation that misuses the notion of international law, Araghchi declared the 12-day war showed the clash could not be resolved by armed force. He asserted the strikes commenced with a US demand for an complete Tehran capitulation and concluded with an absolute demand for a ceasefire.
Iran is convinced the opening assaults from Tel Aviv were executed with total Washington understanding and coordination, making confidence hard to restore.
Dialogue Stays the Ultimate Resolution
Araghchi declared: "Tehran was not the one that had abandoned dialogue; it was the United States and the western countries that had repeatedly tried to enforce their will during the negotiations. Negotiations can still be active and remains the final answer to settle disagreements, but its standards, guidelines and principles must be respected."
"Provided that they address to the Iranian people with the language of respect and respect, they will receive a response in the same tone."
Restoration and Recovery
In what is portrayed by Iran's diplomats as the battle of recovery and recovery, the foreign minister said he was assured Iran's military capacities "are much stronger than preceding 13 or 14 June of this year. Every aspect of our defense have been restored. We learned numerous insights from this engagement; we have identified our internal vulnerabilities and the shortcomings of the adversary."
He continued: "We managed to survive this engagement. Our enrichment knowledge, which they aimed to eliminate, stays intact. The installations and machinery, if damaged, will be reconstructed; what is important is the resolve of the Iranian people and then the social solidarity that they sought to undermine, but did not succeed to break. The nation of Iran have developed stronger, more integrated, and more endorsing of the government and the nation in the wake of this assault."