Iran’s foreign minister said Saturday that the regime is open to resuming nuclear negotiations with the United States, less than a month after President Donald Trump ordered strikes that disabled Iran’s nuclear weapons sites, according to Iranian state media.
Speaking at a diplomatic conference in Tehran, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated that Iran is willing to reengage in talks on nuclear disarmament, provided the situation remains peaceful in the near term. Araghchi added that “assurance should be provided that in case of a resumption of talks, the trend will not lead to war.”
In reference to the 12-day conflict with Israel, which featured a daring B2 Bomber raid on the regime’s nuclear weapons facility—resulting in a setback of at least two years according to the latest U.S. intelligence reports—Araghchi discussed the Iranian government’s stance on resuming talks.
“First of all, there should be a firm guarantee that such actions will not be repeated. The attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities has made it more difficult and complicated to achieve a solution based on negotiations,” he said.
After the strikes, Iran halted its cooperation with the UN’s nuclear watchdog, leading to the withdrawal of inspectors from the country. Allowing inspectors to return will be a critical step for any potential resumption of negotiations.
Araghchi stated that, under Iranian law, the country will respond to the UN nuclear agency’s requests for cooperation on a “case-by-case” basis, depending on Iran’s national interests. He added that any inspections must take into account Iran’s “security” considerations as well as the safety of the inspectors, according to Iranian state media.
“The risk of proliferation of radioactive ingredients and an explosion of ammunition that remains from the war in the attacked nuclear sites is serious,” he said. Araghchi also confirmed that Iran will continue its uranium enrichment program. While the regime has consistently claimed the effort is intended for domestic energy use, the international community has widely challenged that assertion.
President Trump has insisted that Iran must discontinue its uranium enrichment program if any nuclear deal is to be reached.
