Tehran’s First Vice President says Iran could hold direct nuclear negotiations with Washington if “favorable conditions” are met, rejecting U.S. demands for a complete halt to uranium enrichment.
In a potential shift that could reshape the nuclear standoff, Iran’s First Vice President Mohammad-Reza Aref declared Tuesday that Tehran is prepared to hold direct talks with the United States — but only if the playing field is level.
“Iran is ready to negotiate under equal conditions as negotiation is for safeguarding both parties’ interests,” Aref told reporters, according to the state-run IRNA news agency. “If the conditions are suitable, the negotiations can be held even directly.”
Aref insisted that while Iran is not opposed to dialogue, it will reject any process that caters solely to American demands, accusing Washington of deliberately ignoring Iranian gestures toward trust-building. “It seems as if they (the Americans) are feigning sleep,” he quipped.
Slamming Western pressure over Iran’s nuclear program as a “politicized campaign,” Aref dismissed U.S. demands for “zero enrichment” as “a big joke.”
The remarks come after months of heightened tensions. Earlier this year, Iran and the U.S. engaged in Oman-mediated indirect talks on the nuclear issue — negotiations abruptly interrupted by the 12-day Iran-Israel conflict in June.
That flare-up saw U.S. forces bomb Iran’s Natanz, Fordow, and Isfahan nuclear sites on June 22. Tehran retaliated by striking the U.S. Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar before a ceasefire with Israel took effect on June 24.
Following the strikes, President Donald Trump claimed Iran had requested direct talks, declaring, “We have scheduled Iran talks, and they want to talk… if we can put something down on paper, that would be fine.” Tehran, however, flatly denied making such a request.
At the heart of the impasse remains Washington’s demand for Iran to completely halt uranium enrichment — a red line Iran has repeatedly vowed not to cross.
With Aref’s latest comments, Tehran appears to be signaling a readiness to explore diplomacy — but only if the U.S. abandons what Iranian officials view as ultimatums masquerading as negotiations.
