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Iran is prepared to restart nuclear negotiations with the United States provided that it is handled with "dignity" and "respect", Iran's top diplomat has announced.

Abbas Araghchi declared only diplomacy produced results, and disclosed recent overtures had come from mediators to reopen discussions with the American leadership. He said Iran did not have unreported enrichment locations, and Tehran was not yet able to permit the UN nuclear inspectorate to inspect struck enrichment centers for protective measures.

Navigating a Complex Path

Araghchi is navigating a challenging course since Iran wishes not to be perceived to be operating from a situation of weakness, and he emphatically stated that Iran had come out more resilient defensively and psychologically from the Israeli-US attack on its enrichment centers in June.

He was addressing at a security conference in Tehran where he restated that Iran had "an inalienable right to process nuclear material on home soil that it will perpetually retain" – the key factor of the stalemate in the earlier negotiations.

Earlier Talks Suddenly Terminated

The prior phases of talks between the United States and Iran were brought to an abrupt and bitter end on 12 June when Israel, with US support, attacked Iran's enrichment centers in a two-week conflict that concluded with Donald Trump claiming the locations had been eliminated. Subsequently, European countries exercised their right to reimpose UN-wide sanctions, but Iran maintains they have not had a substantial consequence.

Perfect Agreement 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 Washington's engagement could process nuclear material. Each party would have been able to declare success since domestic enrichment would have continued and the US could be confident that Iran's enrichment initiative was solely for peaceful purposes.

It had not been agreed in the talks that US nuclear scientists could work inside Iran, but that was a logical implication of the consortium proposal. Officials asserted on multiple occasions they had achieved a deal with Trump's special envoy the American negotiator only for the arrangement to disintegrate due to "spoilers in Washington".

Present Position

Iranian officials said the partnership proposal was now no longer available, but it seems highly likely the offer could be resurrected in certain ways if talks reopen.

The American leader in recent days stated he had been receiving messages that Iran desired to resume discussions, but privately Tehran representatives state they are not yet obtaining coherent offers from America either explicitly or from significant local go-betweens, such as the Qatari government, Egypt, the Omani authorities and the Saudi kingdom. The Tehran's diplomatic corps has been criticized of passivity in the face of Washington's unmediated tactics, but Iran asserts diplomacy is not part of a spectacle.

Diplomatic Standpoint

In his speech to the conference, designed to depict the US as a dominant force that exploits the notion of international law, the foreign minister stated the two-week conflict revealed the clash could not be settled by armed force. He stated the assaults commenced with a US demand for an unconditional Iranian surrender and concluded with an absolute demand for a ceasefire.

Iran is convinced the first strikes by Israel were executed with complete American awareness and collaboration, making trust difficult to reestablish.

Dialogue Continues the Final Answer

Araghchi said: "It was not Iran that had deserted dialogue; it was America and the western countries that had repeatedly tried to enforce their desires during the negotiations. Diplomacy can still be alive and stays the final answer to resolve disagreements, but its criteria, guidelines and tenets must be respected."

"Provided that they talk to the citizens of Tehran with the approach of dignity and respect, they will receive a reply in the same tone."

Repair and Rebuilding

In what is portrayed by Tehran representatives as the struggle of recovery and reconstruction, the foreign minister said he was certain Iran's defence capabilities "are much stronger than preceding 13 or 14 June of this year. Our entire military infrastructure have been rebuilt. We gained multiple understandings from this conflict; we have discovered our own weaknesses and the vulnerabilities of the adversary."

He added: "We effectively endured this engagement. Our enrichment knowledge, which they aimed to destroy, remains in place. The facilities and gear, if destroyed, will be reconstructed; what is important is the will of the Iranian people and then the national cohesion that they targeted, but failed to destroy. The Iranian people have developed stronger, more cohesive, and more supportive of the leadership and the nation in the face of this attack."