Iran’s top diplomat yesterday met with the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), ahead of a second round of negotiations with the US over Tehran’s nuclear program.
Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs Abbas Araghchi met with IAEA Director-General Rafael Grossi and said he would also meet with Omani Minister of Foreign Affairs Badr al-Busaidi.
Oman is hosting the US-Iran talks in Geneva, Switzerland, today.
Photo: Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs via AFP
“I am in Geneva with real ideas to achieve a fair and equitable deal,” Araghchi wrote on X. “What is not on the table: submission before threats.”
On Sunday, Iranian Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Majid Takht-Ravanchi signaled that Tehran could be open to compromise on the nuclear issue, but is looking for an easing of international sanctions led by the US.
“The ball is in America’s court. They have to prove they want to have a deal with us,” Takht-Ravanchi told the BBC. “If we see a sincerity on their part, I am sure that we will be on a road to have an agreement.”
“We are ready to discuss this and other issues related to our program provided that they are also ready to talk about the sanctions,” he added.
Oman hosted a first round of indirect talks between the US and Iran on Feb. 6.
The US is also hosting talks between envoys from Russia and Ukraine in Geneva today and tomorrow, days ahead of the fourth anniversary of the all-out Russian invasion of its neighbor.
Similar talks last year between the US and Iran about Iran’s nuclear program broke down after Israel launched what became a 12-day war on Iran, which included the US bombing Iranian nuclear sites.
US President Donald Trump initially threatened to take military action over Iran’s crackdown on nationwide protests last month, but then shifted to a pressure campaign in the past few weeks to try to get Tehran to make a deal over its nuclear program.
Trump on Friday said the USS Gerald R. Ford, the world’s largest aircraft carrier, was being sent from the Caribbean to the Middle East to join other military assets the US has built up in the region.
He also said a change in power in Iran “would be the best thing that could happen.”
Iran has said that if the US attacks, it would respond with an attack of its own.
The Trump administration has maintained that Iran can have no uranium enrichment under any deal. Tehran says it would not agree to that.
Iran has insisted its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes.
The meeting with Grossi is a significant step after Iran suspended all cooperation with the IAEA following the June war with Israel. The two also met briefly on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in September last year.
The IAEA said it has been unable to verify the status of Iran’s near weapons-grade uranium stockpile since the war. Iran has allowed the IAEA some access to sites that were not damaged, but has not allowed inspectors to visit other sites.
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