🔗 Share this article

Iran is prepared to resume nuclear talks with the United States provided that it is handled with "dignity" and "honor", Tehran's foreign minister has declared.

Abbas Araghchi said only diplomacy produced results, and shared new appeals had originated from go-betweens to restart talks with the American leadership. He said Iran possessed no secret atomic facilities, and Iran could not yet allow the International Atomic Energy Agency to inspect struck enrichment centers for protective measures.

Walking a Complex Path

The foreign minister is navigating a challenging path since Iran aims to avoid be perceived to be operating from a situation of disadvantage, and he insisted repeatedly that Iran had come out stronger militarily and mentally from the Israeli-US attack on its enrichment centers in June.

He was speaking at a security conference in Tehran where he reiterated that Iran had "a fundamental entitlement to refine atomic fuel domestically that it will perpetually retain" – the key factor of the impasse in the previous talks.

Prior Negotiations Unexpectedly Ended

The prior phases of talks between the US and Iran were brought to an abrupt and bitter conclusion on 12 June when the Israeli government, with Washington's assistance, struck Tehran's atomic facilities in a fortnight-long engagement that culminated with the American leader asserting the facilities had been destroyed. Subsequently, European countries exercised their authority to reinstate global restrictions, but Iran maintains they have not had a substantial consequence.

Magic Solution Suggested

Tehran representatives said they felt they had attained a "ideal resolution" to the enrichment issue in earlier negotiations, when it was decided an Iran-based consortium with Washington's engagement could process nuclear material. The two nations would have been able to declare success since domestic enrichment would have continued and the US could be certain that Iran's atomic project was entirely non-military.

It had not been settled in the discussions that US nuclear scientists could operate inside Iran, but that was a logical implication of the cooperative offer. Officials claimed on multiple occasions they had reached agreement with Trump's special envoy the US official only for the agreement to collapse due to "spoilers in Washington".

Current Situation

Tehran representatives stated the partnership proposal was now off the table, but it seems very probable the offer could be revived in certain ways if negotiations restart.

The American leader last week claimed he had been obtaining communications that Iran wanted to resume discussions, but confidentially Tehran representatives state they are not yet getting clear proposals from the United States either directly or from significant local go-betweens, such as the Qatari government, the Egyptian leadership, Oman and Saudi Arabia. The Tehran's diplomatic corps has been criticized of non-responsiveness in the wake of Washington's unmediated tactics, but Tehran asserts diplomacy is not part of a performance.

Negotiating Standpoint

In his address to the forum, aimed to paint the US as a hegemonic power that abuses the idea of international law, the foreign minister stated the two-week conflict demonstrated the dispute could not be resolved by military means. He stated the strikes commenced with a American requirement for an unconditional Iranian surrender and ended with an unconditional call for a ceasefire.

Iran is convinced the initial Israeli attacks were mounted with total Washington understanding and coordination, making faith hard to reestablish.

Negotiations Remains the Ultimate Solution

Araghchi declared: "Tehran was not the one that had abandoned negotiations; it was the United States and the western countries that had consistently tried to dictate their demands during the negotiations. Diplomacy can still be alive and stays the primary answer to address conflicts, but its criteria, regulations and fundamentals must be adhered to."

"In case they speak to the nation of Iran with the language of dignity and respect, they will get a response in the equivalent approach."

Recovery and Rebuilding

In what is portrayed by Tehran representatives as the conflict of restoration and recovery, Araghchi said he was confident Iran's military capacities "are much stronger than before 13 or 14 June of this year. Our entire military infrastructure have been reestablished. We gained multiple understandings from this war; we have identified our internal vulnerabilities and the shortcomings of the enemy."

He stated: "We effectively endured this war. Our enrichment knowledge, which they aimed to eliminate, remains in place. The sites and equipment, if destroyed, will be rebuilt; what is crucial is the determination of the citizens of Tehran and then the social solidarity that they aimed at, but did not succeed to shatter. The Iranian people have become more resilient, more integrated, and more endorsing of the administration and the country in the face of this attack."