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Tehran is willing to restart atomic talks with the United States on condition that it is approached with "dignity" and "respect", Tehran's top diplomat has declared.

Abbas Araghchi declared solely negotiations was effective, and disclosed recent overtures had originated from intermediaries to restart discussions with the Trump administration. He claimed Iran did not have secret atomic facilities, and Iran could not yet authorize the UN nuclear inspectorate to access bombed nuclear sites for safety concerns.

Walking a Challenging Path

Araghchi is treading a complex path since Iran aims to avoid appear to be acting from a stance of vulnerability, and he insisted repeatedly that Iran had arisen more resilient militarily and psychologically from the joint assault on its nuclear sites in June.

He was talking at a defense forum in Tehran where he reaffirmed that Iran had "an absolute privilege to process nuclear material domestically that it will perpetually retain" – the main reason of the impasse in the earlier negotiations.

Previous Discussions Unexpectedly Concluded

The prior phases of discussions between the United States and Iran were brought to an abrupt and acrimonious termination on 12 June when the Israeli government, with US support, attacked Tehran's atomic facilities in a 12-day war that concluded with the US president declaring the sites had been destroyed. Subsequently, EU nations used their right to reinstate UN-wide sanctions, but Iran maintains they have not had a major impact.

Magic Solution Suggested

Tehran representatives said they felt they had attained a "perfect agreement" to the uranium processing matter in prior discussions, when it was agreed an domestic cooperative with American involvement could refine atomic fuel. Both sides would have been able to assert triumph since home-based processing would have persisted and the US could be confident that Iran's atomic project was exclusively peaceful.

It had not been settled in the negotiations that Washington's technical specialists could operate on Iranian soil, but that was a logical implication of the cooperative offer. Diplomats claimed on multiple occasions they had achieved a deal with Washington's diplomat the American negotiator only for the arrangement to fall apart due to "detractors in America".

Present Situation

Iranian officials stated the cooperative arrangement was now withdrawn, but it seems very probable the proposal could be resurrected in some form if discussions reopen.

Trump in recent days stated he had been obtaining communications that Iran wanted to resume discussions, but privately Iran's diplomats state they are not yet receiving coherent offers from America either explicitly or from key regional mediators, such as the Qatari government, the Egyptian leadership, the Omani authorities and Saudi Arabia. The Iran's state department has been criticized of passivity in the aftermath of Trump's direct instinctive approach, but Iran says dialogue is not part of a spectacle.

Political Stance

In his remarks to the gathering, aimed to paint the US as a controlling nation that exploits the notion of international law, the foreign minister stated the 12-day war showed the conflict could not be settled by armed force. He stated the attacks started with a American requirement for an unconditional Iranian surrender and concluded with an unconditional call for a halt to hostilities.

Iran is convinced the first strikes by Israel were carried out with total Washington understanding and coordination, making trust challenging to restore.

Dialogue Remains the Primary Answer

Araghchi stated: "It was not Iran that had abandoned dialogue; it was the United States and the European states that had repeatedly sought to enforce their desires during the negotiations. Negotiations can still be alive and remains the primary answer to address disagreements, but its criteria, regulations and fundamentals must be followed."

"In case they address to the nation of Iran with the approach of respect and honor, they will get a answer in the same tone."

Repair and Rebuilding

In what is portrayed by Iran's diplomats as the battle of repair and recovery, the foreign minister claimed he was confident Iran's defence capabilities "are considerably enhanced than before 13 or 14 June of this year. Every aspect of our defense have been reestablished. We learned many lessons from this conflict; we have identified our personal limitations and the shortcomings of the opponent."

He continued: "We successfully passed this war. Our nuclear technology, which they planned to destroy, continues to exist. The installations and gear, if damaged, will be reconstructed; what is essential is the will of the Iranian people and then the unity of the country that they sought to undermine, but did not succeed to break. The Iranian people have become more resilient, more cohesive, and more supportive of the government and the state in the aftermath of this invasion."