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Tehran is prepared to reinitiate atomic discussions with Washington as long as it is treated with "respect" and "honor", Iran's foreign minister has declared.

Abbas Araghchi declared solely negotiations was effective, and disclosed new appeals had been made by intermediaries to reopen talks with the Trump administration. He claimed Iran had zero secret atomic facilities, and Iran had not yet reached a point to allow the global atomic watchdog to inspect bombed nuclear sites for safety concerns.

Walking a Challenging Route

The foreign minister is treading a challenging course since Iran aims to avoid be perceived to be proceeding from a stance of weakness, and he insisted repeatedly that Iran had come out more resilient in military terms and emotionally from the coordinated strike on its atomic facilities in June.

He was addressing at a defense forum in Tehran where he reiterated that Iran had "an inalienable right to enrich uranium within its borders that it will always maintain" – the primary cause of the impasse in the previous talks.

Previous Talks Abruptly Ended

The earlier sessions of discussions between the US and Iran were ended suddenly and hostile end on 12 June when the Israeli government, with US support, attacked Iran's enrichment centers in a 12-day war that ended with the US president claiming the facilities had been eliminated. Subsequently, EU nations exercised their authority to reimpose global restrictions, but Iran asserts they have not had a substantial consequence.

Perfect Agreement Proposed

Tehran representatives stated they felt they had reached a "perfect agreement" to the enrichment issue in earlier negotiations, when it was decided an local partnership with American involvement could enrich uranium. The two nations would have been able to declare success since local refinement would have remained and the US could be confident that Iran's nuclear programme was exclusively peaceful.

It had not been agreed in the discussions that American atomic experts could work within Iranian territory, but that was a natural consequence of the cooperative offer. Representatives stated three times they had reached agreement with Washington's diplomat Steve Witkoff only for the agreement to collapse due to "detractors in America".

Present Position

Tehran representatives said the consortium offer was now off the table, but it seems highly likely the proposal could be resurrected in some form if discussions reopen.

The US president last week stated he had been receiving messages that Iran desired to reopen negotiations, but confidentially Iran's diplomats say they are not yet receiving clear proposals from Washington either explicitly or from important Middle Eastern intermediaries, such as the Qatari government, the Egyptian leadership, Oman and the Saudi kingdom. The Iranian foreign ministry has been charged of inactivity in the aftermath of Trump's direct instinctive approach, but Iran asserts negotiations is not part of a show.

Negotiating Standpoint

In his address to the conference, designed to portray the US as a hegemonic power that exploits the idea of worldwide standards, Araghchi stated the 12-day war demonstrated the conflict could not be resolved by combat operations. He said the attacks commenced with a American requirement for an unconditional Iranian surrender and concluded with an complete request for a ceasefire.

Iran is assured the first strikes by Israel were carried out with full US knowledge and coordination, making faith challenging to reestablish.

Negotiations Continues the Final Answer

Araghchi said: "It was not Iran that had deserted negotiations; it was the United States and the Western nations that had repeatedly sought to impose their will during the discussions. Negotiations can still be active and continues the ultimate answer to address conflicts, but its criteria, rules and principles must be respected."

"In case they talk to the Iranian people with the tone of respect and honor, they will obtain a answer in the same tone."

Repair and Rebuilding

In what is described by Iranian officials as the struggle of recovery and reconstruction, Araghchi stated he was assured Iran's military capacities "are much stronger than before 13 or 14 June of this year. Our entire military infrastructure have been reestablished. We acquired many lessons from this engagement; we have discovered our internal vulnerabilities and the vulnerabilities of the adversary."

He stated: "We managed to survive this engagement. Our nuclear technology, which they aimed to eliminate, continues to exist. The installations and gear, if damaged, will be rebuilt; what is essential is the will of the citizens of Tehran and then the social solidarity that they targeted, but were unable to destroy. The nation of Iran have grown more powerful, more integrated, and more endorsing of the leadership and the nation in the face of this assault."