Iran Foreign Minister: No Talks with U.S., Until It Guarantees It Won’t Bomb Again

July 2—Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told CBS News June 30 that Iran will resume talks with the U.S. only if Tehran has guarantees that Washington will not attack again. 

I don’t think negotiations will restart as quickly as that,” Araghchi said, referring to President Donald Trump’s statements last week that negotiations could resume in a week. “In order for us to decide to re-engage, we will have to first ensure that America will not revert back to targeting us in a military attack during the negotiations,” he said, in his first interview with an American media outlet inside Iran since the June 21 U.S. air strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities. “And I think with all these considerations, we still need more time.”

Furthermore, Araghchi also insisted, “The doors of diplomacy will never slam shut.”

“One cannot obliterate the technology and science for enrichment through bombings,” Araghchi told CBS. “If there is this will on our part, and the will exists in order to once again make progress in this industry, we will be able to expeditiously repair the damages and make up for the lost time.”

When CBS News asked if Iran intends to continue enriching uranium, Araghchi replied, that the country’s “peaceful nuclear program has turned into a matter of national pride and glory. We have also gone through 12 days of imposed war; therefore, people will not easily back down from enrichment.”

CBS News noted that Trump has also indicated he could order strikes on Iran again, should Iran resume enriching uranium beyond a certain level. Araghchi questioned the legality of such action, and said Iran was prepared for more attacks. “We showed and proved during this 12-day imposed war that we have the ability to defend ourselves, and we will continue to do so should any aggression be launched against us,” he said.

Talks with Egypt

Separately, Araghchi lamented that the UN Security Council and the International Atomic Energy Agency have declined to condemn Israel’s war of aggression against Iran, during a phone call with Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty June 30, reported Iranian news agency Tasnim. He emphasized Iran’s firm pursuit of efforts to identify the aggressors and obtain reparations, the Iranian ministry’s website reported.

For his part, Abdelatty welcomed the end of Israel’s aggression and stressed Egypt’s continued efforts to help de-escalate tensions in the region, including efforts to establish a ceasefire in Gaza. 

Positions Evolving

Sources close to the White House say that the Iranian and U.S. positions are evolving as a result of ongoing direct and indirect backchannel talks between the U.S. and Iran, brokered by the Qataris, They say that the Administration had initially failed to take into account Iranian perceptions of the betrayal of Iran's trust in Trump, when he first did not stop the Israeli attack, then authorized a U.S. attack, while talking about his support for ongoing discussions for a negotiated settlement of all matters pertaining to Iran's alleged nuclear weapons program. They also say the Trump had failed to consider the Islamic period of mourning for those killed in the war, the which is on-going, when calling for early talks.

These sources say that Trump is prepared to say that the US attack was a "one off" response and that he has no further plans to attack Iran, regardless of ongoing damage assessments. The President, said a source, shares the Foreign Minister's belief that the ultimate solution in the crisis can only arise from a negotiated settlement.