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Tehran is prepared to reinitiate nuclear discussions with the United States as long as it is handled with "respect" and "honor", Iran's top diplomat has announced.

The Iranian diplomat said solely negotiations produced results, and revealed fresh requests had been made by mediators to restart discussions with the American leadership. He claimed Iran had zero undeclared nuclear sites, and Tehran had not yet reached a point to permit the global atomic watchdog to inspect bombed nuclear sites for security reasons.

Navigating a Challenging Course

Araghchi is navigating a challenging path since Iran does not want be seen to be operating from a position of weakness, and he emphatically stated that Iran had emerged more resilient in military terms and mentally from the Israeli-US attack on its enrichment centers in June.

He was speaking at a defense forum in Tehran where he reiterated that Iran had "a fundamental entitlement to process nuclear material on home soil that it will always maintain" – the key factor of the stalemate in the previous talks.

Prior Discussions Unexpectedly Ended

The earlier sessions of discussions between the US and Iran were concluded unexpectedly and acrimonious end on 12 June when Israel, with American backing, attacked Tehran's atomic facilities in a two-week conflict that concluded with Donald Trump declaring the facilities had been destroyed. Following this, EU nations exercised their authority to reinstate UN-wide sanctions, but Iran asserts they have not had a substantial consequence.

Magic Solution Suggested

Iranian officials claimed they felt they had attained a "magic solution" to the uranium processing matter in prior discussions, when it was settled an local partnership with US participation could enrich uranium. Each party would have been able to declare success since home-based processing would have remained and the US could be confident that Iran's nuclear programme was solely for peaceful purposes.

It had not been agreed in the talks that Washington's technical specialists could operate within Iranian territory, but that was a reasonable assumption of the consortium proposal. Officials asserted repeatedly they had reached agreement with the US representative the US official only for the deal to collapse due to "spoilers in Washington".

Present Position

Iran's diplomats said the partnership proposal was now withdrawn, but it seems quite possible the offer could be reintroduced in various formats if talks reopen.

The American leader in recent days claimed he had been receiving messages that Iran desired to resume discussions, but confidentially Iran's diplomats claim they are not yet getting coherent offers from Washington either directly or from important Middle Eastern intermediaries, such as Qatar, the Egyptian leadership, Oman and Saudi Arabia. The Iran's state department has been criticized of non-responsiveness in the aftermath of Washington's unmediated tactics, but Iran says dialogue is not part of a show.

Negotiating Standpoint

In his remarks to the forum, designed to portray the US as a hegemonic power that abuses the concept of worldwide standards, Araghchi stated the fortnight-long engagement showed the dispute could not be settled by armed force. He said the assaults commenced with a American requirement for an complete Tehran capitulation and culminated with an unconditional call for a halt to hostilities.

Iran is certain the initial Israeli attacks were mounted with total Washington understanding and collaboration, making faith difficult to rebuild.

Diplomacy Remains the Ultimate Answer

The foreign minister said: "It was not Iran that had abandoned diplomacy; it was America and the Western nations that had always sought to impose their demands during the discussions. Negotiations can still be viable and stays the ultimate answer to address disputes, but its criteria, guidelines and fundamentals must be followed."

"Provided that they address to the Iranian people with the language of dignity and respect, they will obtain a answer in the equivalent language."

Restoration and Rebuilding

In what is described by Iran's diplomats as the battle of repair and recovery, Araghchi claimed he was assured Iran's security strengths "have significantly improved than before 13 or 14 June of this year. All our capabilities have been rebuilt. We acquired many lessons from this engagement; we have come to know our internal vulnerabilities and the weaknesses of the enemy."

He continued: "We successfully passed this engagement. Our atomic expertise, which they intended to eliminate, continues to exist. The facilities and equipment, if damaged, will be restored; what is essential is the will of the Iranian people and then the social solidarity that they aimed at, but were unable to break. The Iranian people have grown stronger, more cohesive, and more backing of the leadership and the country in the face of this assault."