Iran 'not afraid' of nuclear negotiations but needs to be certain of US commitment

Foreign Minister says Washington must not seek 'military option' should talks collapse

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, right, says Tehran has received 'numerous' invitations from Washington to resume discussions. EPA

Iran's Foreign Minister has said Tehran is “not afraid” of returning to negotiations on its nuclear programme, after having received “numerous” invitations from the US.

However, Abbas Araghchi said his country needs to be certain that Washington remains committed to the talks and would not launch military strikes if they collapse.

Tehran and Washington have held five rounds of nuclear talks, mediated by Oman, since April. A sixth round scheduled for June 15 was cancelled after Israel launched a surprise attack on Iran on June 13. The US later joined the conflict, striking three Iranian nuclear facilities.

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“In the middle of the negotiations, we encountered a change in the direction of the negotiations towards a military option, and this was a betrayal that the Americans committed not to us but to diplomacy,” Mr Araghchi said on Saturday, reported Iran's state Irna news agency.

“If they insist on returning to the negotiating table − which is the case now, and we have received numerous messages − it is natural that we must be convinced that such behaviour will not happen again,” he added.

Mr Araghchi said Tehran needs guarantees from Washington that it would not seek a “military option” if talks were to resume and collapse.

Earlier this week, in an interview American journalist Tucker Carlson, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Iran was ready to return to negotiations.

Mr Pezeshkian said that while Tehran was willing to return to allowing supervision of its programme, its nuclear infrastructure had been “severely damaged” by recent US strikes.

“We don't have any access to them,” he said. “We have to wait for it and to see what happens and how much they have been damaged, so that we can go for the supervision.”

The talks were aimed at regulating Iran's nuclear activities in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions. Since the 12-day war with Israel ended, Tehran has also suspended co-operation with the UN nuclear watchdog.

Before agreeing to any new meeting with the International Atomic Energy Agency, “we are examining its timing, its location, its form, its ingredients, the assurances it requires”, said Mr Araghchi, who also serves as Iran's lead negotiator.

He said that any talks would focus only on Iran's nuclear activities, not its military capabilities.

“We will not have any agreement in which enrichment is not included,” he said. The topic of enrichment has been a key sticking point throughout nuclear talks.

Axios reported on Saturday that Russian President Vladimir Putin told both US President Donald Trump and Iranian officials that he supported a deal with zero enrichment and had encouraged Tehran to agree, citing European officials. This would mark a significant change in Moscow's stance after years of backing Tehran on the nuclear issue.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said at the Brics summit in Rio on Monday that Moscow would remain a committed ally of Iran and support its nuclear programme.

“Russia has technological solutions for uranium depletion and is ready to work with Iran in this field,” Mr Lavrov said, as reported by Russian state news outlet Tass.