Since taking office in January, the US President Donald Trump has repeatedly called for talks with Iran to reach an agreement on its nuclear issue.
At the same time, he has threated Iran with bombing if an agreement is not finalized between the two sides.
Trump sent a letter to the Leader of Iran’s Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei last month calling for negotiations.
On Thursday, the US president said he favored “direct talks,” and argued that they were “faster” and offered a better understanding than going through intermediaries.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Saturday that direct talks made no sense with a country “that constantly threatens to resort to force in violation of the UN Charter and that expresses contradictory positions from its various officials.”
“We remain committed to diplomacy and are ready to try the path of indirect negotiations,” he underlined during a ceremony on the occasion of Iran’s new year, in which ambassadors and envoys from foreign countries attended.
On Saturday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said his country was willing to engage in dialogue with the United States on an “equal footing.”
He also questioned Washington’s sincerity in calling for negotiations, saying, “If you want negotiations, then what is the point of threatening?”
Iran and the United States have had no diplomatic relations shortly after the 1979 Islamic Revolution, with some regional countries like Oman playing a mediating role between the two sides.
In 2015, the country reached a landmark deal with the permanent members of the UN Security Council, namely the United States, France, China, Russia, and the United Kingdom, as well as Germany, on its nuclear activities.
The agreement provided sanctions relief in exchange for curbs on Iranian nuclear activities.
In 2018, during Trump’s first term in office, the US withdrew from the agreement and reinstated sanctions on Iran. In response, Iran rolled back on its commitments under the agreement and accelerated its nuclear program.
Western countries including the US have long accused Iran of pursuing a nuclear weapon, which Tehran has denied, insisting its enrichment activities were solely for peaceful purposes.
Iran Daily