Irans Foreign Minister: US must agree compensation before nuclear talks

The US must agree to compensate Iran for losses incurred during last month’s war the Islamic republic’s foreign minister said as Tehran hardens its position and imposes new conditions for resuming nuclear talks with the Trump administration.

Abbas Araghchi told the Financial Times that Iran would not agree to “business as usual” in the wake of the 12-day conflict with Israel, which the US briefly joined despite having been in talks with Iran. “They must explain why they attacked us in the middle of negotiations and they must ensure that they do not repeat this [in future negotiations]. And they must compensate [Iran] for the damage they have caused'', he said. “My message [to Witkoff] is not that complicated'', Araghchi said. “I said the recent aggression proved there is no military solution for Iran’s nuclear programme''. “Anti-negotiation feelings are very high'', Araghchi said. “People are telling me, ‘Don’t waste your time anymore, don’t be cheated by them . . . if they come to negotiations it’s only a cover-up for their other intentions''. Western officials say that while Iran’s nuclear programme was severely damaged, it has not been destroyed. They also believe that Iran has retained some, if not all, of a 408kg stockpile of uranium enriched to 60 per cent purity, close to weapons-grade. Araghchi said he did not know where the stockpile was, but added that Tehran retained the capabilities to enrich uranium. “We can negotiate, they can present their argument and we will present our own argument,” Araghchi said. “But with zero enrichment, we don’t have a thing''. “With the Europeans, there is no reason right now to negotiate because they cannot lift sanctions, they cannot do anything'', he said. “If they do snap back, that means that this is the end of the road for them''. Source: FINANCIAL TIMES