Iran's Foreign Minister Details Stance on US Negotiations and Middle East Conflict

Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi detailed his position on the current war in the Middle East and shared an excerpt from his negotiations with Witkoff during an interview with Mehr News. Araghchi said the US had entered negotiations demanding zero uranium enrichment before the 12-day war. "In response to the illegal and unreasonable demand for zero enrichment, we resisted and stood firm. When they saw that they couldn't achieve what they wanted through negotiations, they started the war." He said Iran's steadfastness at the negotiating table forced the US to choose the harder path. "They were defeated in the 12-day war."

Negotiation with Witkoff

Araghchi recounted a conversation with US envoy Steve Witkoff, asking: "Have you ever been in a meeting where at any moment you think the whole meeting might be bombed? They just stared at me blankly." "I said, have you ever been on a phone call and thought that at any moment while you're talking you might explode? Have you ever checked in on your family over the phone and thought this might be the last time? We have experienced these things and we stood our ground. You have to talk to us differently. You can't threaten us, and you can't bribe us." Araghchi said the US had offered to build power plants and infrastructure in exchange for concessions. "I said no bribes, no threats. You can only threaten someone who's afraid. When we go in, fully expecting that anything could happen to us at any moment, you can't scare me." Araghchi also referenced the January 3 US operation that captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and flew him to New York for trial. "This isn't Venezuela where you take one person and everyone else gets scared and backs down."

Two miscalculations

Araghchi said the US made two miscalculations. "The story of the 40-day war starts here when after the 12-day war, in my opinion, they made another miscalculation — that they didn't account for the resistance. They should have been more prepared." "The Zionist regime thought that with a short attack they could destroy everything, dismantle it, and then the system would collapse and the Islamic Republic would surrender. When that didn't happen, because they weren't prepared for a prolonged war and because the people didn't turn away and supported the system, they were forced to stop the war."