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

The Iranian diplomat stated only diplomacy was effective, and revealed new appeals had been made by go-betweens to resume discussions with the US government. He claimed Iran possessed no unreported enrichment locations, and Iran had not yet reached a point to permit the International Atomic Energy Agency to access attacked atomic facilities for protective measures.

Navigating a Challenging Path

The foreign minister is walking a difficult course since Iran wishes not to be perceived to be acting from a stance of vulnerability, and he insisted repeatedly that Iran had come out stronger militarily and psychologically from the joint assault on its nuclear sites in June.

He was speaking at a defense forum in Tehran where he reiterated that Iran had "a fundamental entitlement to enrich uranium within its borders that it will always maintain" – the main reason of the impasse in the earlier negotiations.

Prior Discussions Abruptly Concluded

The previous five rounds of discussions between the United States and Iran were brought to an abrupt and hostile conclusion on 12 June when Israel, with US support, struck Iranian nuclear sites in a fortnight-long engagement that concluded with Donald Trump asserting the sites had been obliterated. Following this, EU nations used their right to reimpose global restrictions, but Iran insists they have not had a substantial consequence.

Ideal Resolution Offered

Iranian officials stated they felt they had attained a "perfect agreement" to the enrichment issue in earlier negotiations, when it was decided an Iran-based consortium with American involvement could enrich uranium. The two nations would have been able to declare success since home-based processing would have continued and the US could be certain that Iran's atomic project was solely for peaceful purposes.

It had not been decided in the discussions that US nuclear scientists could function inside Iran, but that was a reasonable assumption of the cooperative offer. Representatives claimed repeatedly they had reached agreement with Trump's special envoy the American negotiator only for the deal to disintegrate due to "spoilers in Washington".

Current Position

Iran's diplomats said the cooperative arrangement was now no longer available, but it seems very probable the offer could be resurrected in some form if talks reopen.

The American leader last week claimed he had been getting signals that Iran sought to resume discussions, but in private Tehran representatives say they are not yet obtaining clear proposals from the United States either straightforwardly or from important Middle Eastern intermediaries, such as the Qatari government, the Egyptian leadership, Oman and Saudi Arabia. The Iranian foreign ministry has been charged of passivity in the wake of Trump's direct instinctive approach, but Iran says diplomacy is not part of a spectacle.

Negotiating Standpoint

In his remarks to the conference, designed to depict the US as a hegemonic power that abuses the concept of global regulations, the foreign minister stated the 12-day war revealed the conflict could not be settled by combat operations. He asserted the attacks commenced with a American requirement for an complete Tehran capitulation and culminated with an unconditional call for a halt to hostilities.

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

Diplomacy Stays the Final Resolution

Araghchi said: "It was not Iran that had abandoned diplomacy; it was the United States and the Western nations that had repeatedly attempted to impose their desires during the negotiations. Diplomacy can still be active and stays the final answer to resolve disputes, but its standards, guidelines and fundamentals must be adhered to."

"In case they talk to the Iranian people with the tone of dignity and respect, they will receive a response in the equivalent language."

Repair and Reconstruction

In what is characterized by Tehran representatives as the struggle of repair and recovery, the foreign minister said he was assured Iran's defence capabilities "are much stronger than before 13 or 14 June of this year. All our capabilities have been rebuilt. We learned multiple understandings from this war; we have identified our internal vulnerabilities and the shortcomings of the opponent."

He stated: "We managed to survive this engagement. Our nuclear technology, which they aimed to obliterate, remains in place. The installations and equipment, if damaged, will be rebuilt; what is crucial is the will of the citizens of Tehran and then the national cohesion that they targeted, but failed to break. The nation of Iran have grown more powerful, more cohesive, and more supportive of the administration and the nation in the face of this attack."