Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi: Iran ready to ‘make a deal’ with US
Tehran is “ready to engage in earnest and with a view to seal a deal,” according to Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, but he emphasises that the future nuclear negotiations will be indirect because of a strong “wall of mistrust” with Washington. “The ball is now in America’s court,” Araghchi said.
His comments, which were published in an opinion piece in The Washington Post, are made in advance of negotiations that are set to start in Oman on Saturday.
Following his withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) nuclear agreement during his first term in 2018, the statement emphasises the difficulties confronting resumed diplomacy under President Donald Trump. In return for the lifting of sanctions, Trump has lately pushed for a new deal that would constrain Iran’s nuclear development.
The extent of the diplomatic divide is shown by Iran’s unwillingness to have direct negotiations. Citing breaches of the initial agreement, Tehran has charged the United States with acting in bad faith. The conclusion of the Oman negotiations may alter the geopolitical balance in the Middle East and beyond as tensions rise and Trump threatens military action.
Araghchi denied Trump’s assertion that direct negotiations will occur in a Washington Post opinion piece. He said the indirect talks were a calculated reaction to the United States’ repeated failures rather than an ideological one. He said that after seeing what he described as Washington’s “unwillingness or inability” to keep its JCPOA promises, Iran is still dubious of American intentions.
Araghchi underlined that any new agreement must have mutual assurances. He cautioned that diplomatic progress would be impeded if the United States’ “maximum pressure” posture continued.
Araghchi shared a link to the opinion piece on his X account shortly after it was published, stating, “Mark my words: Iran prefers diplomacy but it knows how to defend itself.”
Iran Upholds Its Nuclear Initiative
Araghchi reaffirmed that Tehran’s programme is benign in response to long-standing accusations over its nuclear aspirations. He highlighted U.S. intelligence assessments that back up his assertion that Iran has never pursued nuclear weapons, as well as wording from the JCPOA agreement.
He cited intelligence director Tulsi Gabbard’s recent congressional testimony, in which she said that since the programme was suspended in 2003, the Iranian government has not approved a resumption of nuclear weapons research.
The Danger of Trump
According to Trump, “Iran is going to be in great danger” if a deal is not achieved. In response, Araghchi issued a warning that Tehran will not tolerate military threats or coercion. He said that for negotiations to be successful, the threat of force must be eliminated. Iran still chooses negotiation, Araghchi said, adding that if the United States is prepared to work towards a real solution, Iran has already shown the way ahead.
“We face a significant wall of mistrust and harbour serious doubts about the sincerity of intentions, made worse by U.S. insistence on resuming the maximum pressure’ policy prior to any diplomatic interaction,” wrote Iran Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. Coercion and imposition will never be tolerated by the great Iranian people, whose strength my administration depends on for effective deterrence. America currently has the upper hand. We have already paved the path for a sincere diplomatic settlement if that is what it wishes.”
“I think Iran is going to be in great danger if the talks with Iran are not successful,” said U.S. President Donald Trump. In fact, I believe it will be a very horrible day for Iran if the negotiations fail.
U.S.-Iranian talks will start in Oman on Saturday. Washington will be represented at the talks by Steve Witkoff, the U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East.
