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Tehran is ready to restart nuclear negotiations with the United States as long as it is treated with "respect" and "honor", Iran's foreign minister has stated.

The Iranian diplomat declared only diplomacy worked, and shared recent overtures had originated from mediators to resume talks with the US government. He claimed Iran did not have secret atomic facilities, and Tehran could not yet allow the global atomic watchdog to access attacked atomic facilities for security reasons.

Navigating a Challenging Path

The foreign minister is navigating a complex course since Iran wishes not to be seen to be acting from a situation of disadvantage, and he insisted repeatedly that Iran had arisen stronger in military terms and emotionally from the joint assault on its atomic facilities in June.

He was talking at a defense forum in Tehran where he reaffirmed that Iran had "a fundamental entitlement to refine atomic fuel domestically that it will perpetually retain" – the main reason of the stalemate in the earlier negotiations.

Previous Talks Abruptly Terminated

The prior phases of discussions between the US and Iran were ended suddenly and bitter termination on 12 June when the Israeli government, with American backing, attacked Iranian nuclear sites in a two-week conflict that ended with the American leader asserting the locations had been destroyed. Afterward, European countries employed their authority to reimpose international penalties, but Iran maintains they have not had a major impact.

Perfect Agreement Suggested

Tehran representatives claimed they felt they had attained a "ideal resolution" to the nuclear fuel concern in prior discussions, when it was settled an Iran-based consortium with Washington's engagement could process nuclear material. Each party would have been able to claim victory since domestic enrichment 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 on Iranian soil, but that was a natural consequence of the consortium proposal. Representatives stated repeatedly they had secured an understanding with Trump's special envoy the American negotiator only for the agreement to fall apart due to "opponents in the US".

Current Status

Iranian officials stated the consortium offer was now off the table, but it seems very probable the suggestion could be revived in certain ways if talks resume.

Trump recently claimed he had been getting signals that Iran wanted to reopen negotiations, but privately Tehran representatives state they are not yet getting consistent overtures from the United States either directly or from important Middle Eastern intermediaries, such as the Qatari government, the Egyptian leadership, the Omani authorities and Saudi Arabia. The Iranian foreign ministry has been accused of non-responsiveness in the aftermath of Trump's direct instinctive approach, but Iran says negotiations is not part of a spectacle.

Political Position

In his address to the forum, aimed to depict the US as a hegemonic power that exploits the notion of worldwide standards, Araghchi stated the 12-day war showed the conflict could not be settled by armed force. He stated the assaults started with a Washington's ultimatum for an unconditional Iranian surrender and culminated with an complete request for a truce.

Iran is convinced the first strikes by Israel were executed with full US knowledge and coordination, making trust challenging to reestablish.

Negotiations Remains the Primary Answer

The foreign minister declared: "It was not Iran that had fled diplomacy; it was the United States and the Western nations that had repeatedly tried to enforce their will during the talks. Diplomacy can still be active and continues the primary solution to resolve disagreements, but its criteria, rules and principles must be respected."

"Provided that they address to the Iranian people with the language of respect and honor, they will obtain a answer in the same language."

Restoration and Reconstruction

In what is portrayed by Iranian officials as the struggle of restoration and recovery, the foreign minister claimed he was assured Iran's defence capabilities "have significantly improved than prior to 13 or 14 June of this year. All our capabilities have been reestablished. We acquired many lessons from this conflict; we have discovered our personal limitations and the shortcomings of the opponent."

He stated: "We effectively endured this war. Our enrichment knowledge, which they planned to destroy, remains in place. The installations and equipment, if eliminated, will be restored; what is important is the will of the Iranian people and then the national cohesion that they aimed at, but did not succeed to break. The citizens of Tehran have developed stronger, more cohesive, and more supportive of the government and the nation in the face of this attack."