Trump stick to his demands... Tehran: Dialogue is not imminent
Afrasianet - US President Donald Trump says his country will get everything it wants from Iran, while Tehran has expressed doubts about an imminent resumption of talks with Washington, stressing that the resumption of dialogue is conditional on first obtaining US guarantees that military attacks against it will not be repeated.
Tensions between Iran and the United States escalated after military strikes targeted nuclear facilities, amid Tehran's adherence to conditions for a return to negotiations, and international fear of the worsening of the crisis and its impact on the security and stability of the region.
Iranian government spokeswoman Fatemeh Mohajerani said that "our nuclear sites have suffered severe damage, and several official bodies have confirmed the extent of the losses they suffered."
Mohajerani added in a press conference that "the nuclear negotiations have not stopped since the government of Massoud Bizshkian took office last August," despite what she described as "contradictions and attack during the negotiation period," stressing Iran's adherence to "the diplomatic track and resolving differences." "According to Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, no date has been set for negotiations, and it is likely that this will not be in the near future," she said.
Trump plans to discuss the situation in Gaza and Iran when he meets Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on Monday.
Trump said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to the White House on Monday would be a "big celebration" of strikes against Iran, according to the Associated Press.
The Trump has confirmed that Tehran wants to hold a meeting after the US strikes on three Iranian nuclear sites last weekend, warning of new strikes on Iran if it enriches uranium to levels that allow it to acquire nuclear weapons.
The Republican-controlled U.S. Senate rejected an attempt by Democrats to prevent President Donald Trump from using more military force against Iran.
Trump said he was "not offering anything" to Iran and was "not talking to it."
Trump again ridiculed questions raised by Democratic lawmakers and others about how the operations would delay Iran's nuclear program, calling them an insult to U.S. pilots who carried out strikes on three major nuclear facilities. "We should celebrate these heroes," he said, stressing that Washington "will get everything it wants from Iran."
Guarantees are a condition for dialogue
In response to the Trump, Araqchi told CBS that "starting any new negotiations first requires making sure that the United States will not target us militarily during the negotiation period," stressing that "the doors of diplomacy will not be closed."
Araqchi explained that "making a decision to return to negotiations first requires guarantees that there will be no US military attack during the talks," and added: "With all these considerations, we still need more time." However, Araqchi said that Iran will defend itself in the event of any aggression, and said: "We have proven during the war our ability to defend ourselves, and we will continue this defense if any new aggression occurs."
Meanwhile, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said his country seeks to resume dialogue between the United States and Iran on the nuclear program, suggesting Rome a possible location for talks, as was previously mediated by Oman.
Since April, the United States and Iran have held indirect talks aimed at finding a new diplomatic solution over Iran's nuclear program. Two of the five tours took place at the Omani embassy in the Italian capital.
"We always work on dialogue to ensure Israel's security, and at the same time, to ensure that Iran cannot build an atomic bomb, while at the same time enabling it to work on civil nuclear energy research," Taiani said, stressing the need for Tehran to allow visits by IAEA inspectors.
Variation in estimates
Doubts have been raised about the impact of the U.S. bombing on Iran's nuclear program.
Trump told Fox that key nuclear sites in Iran had been wiped out like never before. "That means the end of their nuclear ambitions, at least for a period of time."
On the same day, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi said in a television interview that Iran could produce enriched uranium within a few months.
"Nuclear technology and knowledge cannot be eliminated by bombing," Araqchi said, noting that "the availability of will on our part can repair the damage and quickly compensate for lost time." "If we have the will to make new progress in this area, and that will exists, we will be able to quickly repair the damage and make up for the lost time."
Restrictions of the nuclear deal
Under the 2015 deal, Iran was barred from enriching uranium above 3.67 percent and from using the Fordow facility for 15 years. However, Trump withdrew from the deal in 2018 and reimposed sanctions, prompting Tehran to gradually raise the level of enrichment to 60 percent in 2021. The International Atomic Energy Agency says that "no other country has enriched uranium to such a high level without producing nuclear weapons."
In a report published on May 31, the IAEA confirmed that Iran has enough uranium enriched to 60 percent to make nine nuclear bombs if it is enriched further. In June, the IAEA said it was currently unable to fully confirm the Iranian program's peacefulness, adding to international concern.
Fears of escalation
Araqchi's statement came a day after his deputy, Majid Takht Ravanchi, said in an interview with the BBC that diplomatic talks with Washington could only be resumed if Washington ruled out new strikes on his country.
Takht Ravanchi said in the interview: "We hear that Washington wants to talk to us," adding: "We did not agree on a specific date. We didn't agree on the mechanisms." "We seek an answer to this question: Are we going to see a repetition of an act of aggression while we are engaged in dialogue?" he said, noting that the United States "has not yet clarified its position."
Takht Ravanchi explained that Tehran was informed that Washington does not want to "engage in regime change in Iran" by targeting Iranian leader Ali Khamenei, pointing to Tehran's commitment to continuing uranium enrichment. But he expressed Tehran's openness to waiving the high level of uranium enrichment, saying: "The level can be discussed, the capability can be discussed, but to say... Your level of enrichment must be zero, and if you don't agree, we will bomb you, that's the law of the jungle."
The War of the 12 Days
Trump said he saved Khamenei from assassination and sharply criticized him for ingratitude after Khamenei said his country had slapped the United States.
Trump called the conflict between Israel and Iran the "12-day war." The war began at dawn on June 13, after Israel launched what it described as a "pre-emptive attack" on military and nuclear sites inside Iran, also targeting dozens of military leaders and nuclear scientists, as part of what Tel Aviv described as an attempt to prevent Tehran from acquiring a nuclear bomb.
Iran responded by sending a barrage of missiles at Israeli military sites, infrastructure and cities. The United States entered the war on June 22 by bombing three major Iranian nuclear facilities in Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan. After 12 days of war, US President Donald Trump announced a ceasefire between Iran and Israel on June 24.
The Kayhan newspaper, which is close to Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, reported that Iranian authorities refrained from announcing the name of the new chief of staff operations, or what is known as the headquarters of the "Khatam al-Anbiya", amid escalating security tensions with Israel.
The newspaper stated in an editorial by Hassan Rashond, a senior security figure close to the IRGC, that the "Zionist enemy" sought to target senior leaders in Iran, but did not succeed in carrying out its plan.
Less than 72 days after assuming the operational command of the IRGC-regular army Joint Chiefs of Staff, Maj. Gen. Ali Shadmani was killed after Gholam Ali Rashid was killed in the first hour of the attack. Iranian authorities confirmed Shadmani's death a week after Israeli reports denied that he had been targeted.
Gen. Rahim Safavi, Iran's top military adviser, warned of a strong response to any U.S. or Israeli "mistake," adding that the IRGC is ready to act and that Iran will not give up the blood of its dead, adding that the response would be "harsher than expected" if threats escalated.
IRGC media quoted Safavi as saying, "We have their positions in our target database, and if any new overreach occurs, we will respond strongly under the leadership of the Supreme Leader."
Gen. Ahmad Vahidi, an advisor to the IRGC commander, warned that Iran would use broad capabilities to respond in the event of a new attack, noting that Iran's missile capabilities are "at their best" and that "military preparations to respond to the Zionist enemy are complete."
After the spy planes. Will war between Israel and Iran return?
In light of the delicate regional conditions and the difficult economic reality in the Middle East in front of a new phase of "cautious anticipation", despite the apparent cessation of military operations, the state of anticipation and surveillance still prevails in the situation, especially between Iran and Israel, as both parties realize that the post-escalation is not the same as before, as the Iranians need to rearrange their cards internally, whether at the security or nuclear level, while the Israelis were surprised by some gaps during the operations, which pushes them towards Despite the continued intensive overflights of spy planes, especially Israelis, in regional airspace, things do not seem to be heading for a new all-out war in the near future.
Dr. Abdel Moneim Said notes that he sees the region as now experiencing a moment of strategic "repositioning" from all sides: "Both Iran and Israel need a comprehensive review. The Iranians are rearranging their internal situation, especially after the recent strikes, and the Israelis, in turn, discovered unexpected surprises during the confrontations, which prompts them to reassess their military and intelligence plans."
He added, in exclusive statements to "News Room" that "the two parties will remain in a state of permanent voyeurism, war is no longer an option strongly on the table, but the conflict has moved to hidden arenas, most notably intelligence and technology."
Saeed stressed that the United States is now playing the role of mediator, seeking to prevent the renewal of any direct military clash, stressing that the United States, in turn, is moving strongly to contain the situation, driven by a clear desire to prevent the recurrence of any extended conflict in the region.
Is Iran moving towards a nuclear bomb? And is it capable?
After one of the recent Israeli strikes, it stated that it had transported enriched nuclear material to safer places, and published photos documenting the transfer via trucks that were spotted before the US strike, in what appeared to be a message that it was still in control of the situation.
But the situation changed after a series of strikes in Qatar against Iran-linked facilities, as Tehran began to acknowledge that the U.S. strikes had done real damage to its nuclear program.
This sudden change in tone raised questions about whether the new statements were part of undeclared understandings between Iran and Washington, especially in light of reports of disagreements between former US President Donald Trump and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), due to his use of terms that "eliminate Iran's nuclear program," statements that later did not match the facts on the ground that revealed damage without complete destruction.
He also said, so far, there is no official or direct framework for understanding between Iran and Israel, but what is happening is done through international pressure and intermediary parties, most notably the United States.
But there will be mediation through U.S. intervention that it pressures Iran to reduce the issue of enrichment to more than 3.7 percent, but at the same time much less than 60 percent, or that it works on this enrichment over a few years, but in the end they come up or agree on one thing.
On the other hand, Israel insists on a complete freeze on Iran's nuclear program, without settling for a temporary or partial reduction, lest it turn into a military program in the future, even if it is promoted as having "peaceful purposes."
Although the parties possess advanced scientific and technological capabilities, fundamental differences in intentions and strategies remain a major obstacle to any long-term agreement, especially in light of mutual mistrust and continued engagement in shadow warfare.