TEHRAN: Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Sunday rejected direct negotiations with the United States as “meaningless”, after US President Donald Trump said he would prefer direct talks with the Islamic republic.
Trump had called last month on Tehran to hold negotiations on its nuclear programme with Washington, but threatened to bomb Iran if diplomacy fails. On Thursday, the US president said he would prefer to hold “direct talks” with Iran.
“I think it goes faster and you understand the other side a lot better than if you go through intermediaries,” he argued. But on Sunday, Araghchi said “direct negotiations would be meaningless with a party 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 added, according to a foreign ministry statement. “Iran keeps itself prepared for all possible or probable events, and just as it is serious in diplomacy and negotiations, it will also be decisive and serious in defending its national interests and sovereignty,” Araghchi said.
On Saturday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said his country was willing to engage in dialogue with the US “on equal footing”. He also questioned Washington’s sincerity in calling for negotiations, saying “if you want negotiations, then what is the point of threatening?.
