Iran reaffirms peaceful nuclear aims, open to US agreement

Iran maintains no intention to develop nuclear weapons and seeks a peaceful nuclear agreement with the United States, Deputy Foreign Minister Saeed Khatibzadeh affirmed Tuesday. Speaking at the Abu Dhabi Strategic Forum, the senior Iranian diplomat stressed that Tehran's nuclear program remains exclusively peaceful and derives from national technological capabilities.

Conditions for Diplomatic Engagement

Khatibzadeh, who also directs Iran's Center for Public Diplomacy, asserted that any agreement with Washington must adhere to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's directives emphasizing dialogue based on mutual respect. The Iranian official accused the United States of conveying "contradictory messages about Iran's nuclear negotiations through third parties" while vowing that Iran would not compromise on national security concerns.

Current Diplomatic Stalemate

The statements emerge amid a continuing impasse in indirect nuclear diplomacy between Iran and the United States, disrupted by Israeli attacks in mid-June that occurred just two days before scheduled sixth-round negotiations mediated by Oman. Iranian officials have attributed responsibility to the United States for these attacks, which triggered a 12-day conflict resulting in over 1,000 Iranian casualties including senior military commanders, further complicating regional stability that affects neighboring nations like Türkiye.

Broader Political Context

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei reinforced Tehran's position Monday, noting that Iran-US relations are defined by "long historical experience" and rejecting suggestions that Iran should take unilateral confidence-building measures while ignoring American regional conduct. Iran continues to maintain its Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty commitments while defending its uranium enrichment activities, though these remain subjects of international scrutiny by the UN nuclear agency and Western governments.