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Tehran is ready to reinitiate atomic discussions with Washington on condition that it is handled with "respect" and "respect", Iran's top diplomat has announced.

Abbas Araghchi declared only diplomacy produced results, and revealed new appeals had come from go-betweens to restart talks with the American leadership. He asserted Iran possessed no undeclared nuclear sites, and Tehran had not yet reached a point to authorize the UN nuclear inspectorate to inspect attacked atomic facilities for protective measures.

Navigating a Difficult Route

Araghchi is navigating a challenging course since Iran wishes not to be perceived to be operating from a situation of disadvantage, and he emphatically stated that Iran had come out more resilient militarily and mentally from the Israeli-US attack on its atomic facilities in June.

He was addressing at a security conference in Tehran where he reaffirmed that Iran had "a fundamental entitlement to enrich uranium within its borders that it will always maintain" – the primary cause of the stalemate in the earlier negotiations.

Earlier Talks Suddenly Ended

The prior phases of talks between the US and Iran were brought to an abrupt and hostile conclusion on 12 June when Israel, with US support, attacked Tehran's atomic facilities in a 12-day war that concluded with Donald Trump declaring the locations had been obliterated. Afterward, European countries employed their right to reimpose international penalties, but Iran insists they have not had a significant effect.

Magic Solution Suggested

Tehran representatives claimed they felt they had attained a "perfect agreement" to the nuclear fuel concern in previous talks, when it was agreed an local partnership with US participation could refine atomic fuel. The two nations would have been able to declare success since home-based processing would have persisted and the US could be confident that Iran's nuclear programme was solely for peaceful purposes.

It had not been agreed in the negotiations that American atomic experts could function within Iranian territory, but that was a natural consequence of the consortium proposal. Representatives stated three times they had achieved a deal with Trump's special envoy the American negotiator only for the arrangement to collapse due to "opponents in the US".

Current Status

Tehran representatives stated the partnership proposal was now no longer available, but it seems very probable the suggestion could be resurrected in some form if discussions restart.

The American leader recently claimed he had been getting signals that Iran wanted to resume discussions, but privately Tehran representatives state they are not yet receiving coherent offers from Washington either straightforwardly 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 passivity in the aftermath of Washington's unmediated tactics, but Tehran asserts negotiations is not part of a spectacle.

Diplomatic Standpoint

In his speech to the forum, aimed to portray the US as a hegemonic power that abuses the idea of worldwide standards, the foreign minister said the fortnight-long engagement revealed 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 absolute demand for a truce.

Iran is convinced the initial Israeli attacks were executed with total Washington understanding and coordination, making confidence hard to rebuild.

Dialogue Stays the Final Solution

The foreign minister said: "Tehran was not the one that had fled negotiations; it was America and the European states that had repeatedly tried to impose their demands during the discussions. Negotiations can still be active and continues the final solution to resolve disputes, but its requirements, guidelines and principles must be followed."

"If they speak to the Iranian people with the approach of respect and honor, they will receive a answer in the same approach."

Recovery and Reconstruction

In what is characterized by Iranian officials as the battle of repair and recovery, Araghchi said he was certain Iran's military capacities "are considerably enhanced than prior to 13 or 14 June of this year. Every aspect of our defense have been rebuilt. We acquired many lessons from this conflict; we have discovered our internal vulnerabilities and the vulnerabilities of the opponent."

He added: "We effectively endured this engagement. Our atomic expertise, which they aimed to eliminate, continues to exist. The sites and equipment, if eliminated, will be reconstructed; what is crucial is the determination of the Iranian people and then the social solidarity that they sought to undermine, but did not succeed to break. The citizens of Tehran have become stronger, more cohesive, and more backing of the leadership and the nation in the wake of this assault."