Tehran Declares It Might Return to US Nuclear Talks provided that Treated with 'Respect' and 'Honor'

Tehran is ready to restart nuclear talks with Washington on condition that it is treated with "dignity" and "honor", Tehran's foreign minister has declared.

Abbas Araghchi said only diplomacy was effective, and disclosed fresh requests had come from go-betweens to resume discussions with the US government. He said Iran did not have undeclared nuclear sites, and Tehran could not yet authorize the UN nuclear inspectorate to access bombed nuclear sites for security reasons.

Walking a Complex Course

Araghchi is navigating a complex path since Iran does not want appear to be operating from a position of vulnerability, and he consistently maintained that Iran had arisen stronger in military terms and emotionally from the joint assault on its enrichment centers in June.

He was speaking at a strategic meeting in Tehran where he reaffirmed that Iran had "a fundamental entitlement to process nuclear material domestically that it will perpetually retain" – the main reason of the impasse in the earlier negotiations.

Previous Discussions Abruptly Ended

The earlier sessions of discussions between the United States and Iran were brought to an abrupt and bitter termination on 12 June when Israel, with US support, struck Tehran's atomic facilities in a two-week conflict that culminated with Donald Trump claiming the locations had been destroyed. Afterward, Western states employed their privilege to reimpose international penalties, but Iran asserts they have not had a major impact.

Magic Solution Suggested

Tehran representatives stated they felt they had attained a "ideal resolution" to the nuclear fuel concern in prior discussions, when it was agreed an Iran-based consortium with US participation could process nuclear material. Each party would have been able to assert triumph since home-based processing would have remained and the US could be certain that Iran's enrichment initiative was exclusively peaceful.

It had not been decided in the negotiations that Washington's technical specialists could work inside Iran, but that was a natural consequence of the cooperative offer. Diplomats claimed three times they had reached agreement with the US representative the American negotiator only for the arrangement to disintegrate due to "detractors in America".

Current Status

Iranian officials stated the cooperative arrangement was now withdrawn, but it seems very probable the offer could be revived in some form if negotiations reopen.

Trump in recent days claimed he had been getting signals that Iran sought to reopen negotiations, but in private Iranian officials state they are not yet getting clear proposals from America either explicitly or from important Middle Eastern intermediaries, such as Qatar, the Egyptian leadership, the Omani authorities and Saudi Arabia. The Tehran's diplomatic corps has been charged of non-responsiveness in the wake of Trump's direct instinctive approach, but Iran asserts diplomacy is not part of a show.

Political Stance

In his speech to the conference, intended to portray the US as a dominant force that exploits the notion of international law, the foreign minister stated the 12-day war showed the clash could not be settled by military means. He stated the strikes started with a Washington's ultimatum for an total Iran submission and ended with an unconditional call for a halt to hostilities.

Iran is certain the opening assaults from Tel Aviv were mounted with full US knowledge and cooperation, making confidence challenging to reestablish.

Diplomacy Stays the Primary Solution

Araghchi stated: "It was not Iran that had fled diplomacy; it was America and the Western nations that had always tried to dictate their desires during the discussions. Diplomacy can still be viable and remains the ultimate answer to settle disagreements, but its requirements, rules and tenets must be followed."

"Provided that they address to the nation of Iran with the language of respect and honor, they will get a response in the equivalent approach."

Repair and Rebuilding

In what is characterized by Tehran representatives as the battle of restoration and rebuilding, the foreign minister said he was certain Iran's security strengths "are much stronger than preceding 13 or 14 June of this year. All our capabilities have been rebuilt. We gained many lessons from this war; we have come to know our own weaknesses and the weaknesses of the opponent."

He stated: "We effectively endured this war. Our atomic expertise, which they intended to obliterate, stays intact. The installations and machinery, if destroyed, will be rebuilt; what is important is the resolve of the Iranian people and then the unity of the country that they targeted, but were unable to destroy. The citizens of Tehran have become more resilient, more cohesive, and more supportive of the government and the state in the aftermath of this attack."