Iran FM: Iran Did Not Negotiate Truce; Ready to Respond Decisively to Any ‘Israeli’ Breach

By Staff, Agencies

Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi confirmed that the "Israeli" entity was forced to end its 12-day war of aggression against Iran “out of desperation” and without any preconditions.

The top diplomat made the remarks during a televised interview on Thursday, addressing a broad range of issues including "Israeli"-American aggression, European complicity, the future course of negotiations, Iran’s decision to suspend cooperation with the UN nuclear agency, and his diplomatic tour of Geneva and Istanbul amid ongoing "Israeli" bombings.

He said it was the Zionist entity that requested a halt to Iranian retaliatory operations, which had inflicted heavy damage across the occupied territories.

According to Araghchi, the entity expressed its readiness to cease its aggression, signaling it would hold its fire if the Islamic Republic also stopped its counterstrikes.

The foreign minister emphasized that Iranian decision-makers agreed to end retaliatory operations only if the enemy ceased its aggression unconditionally, a condition the Zionist entity ultimately accepted because it found itself on the back foot.

He hastened to add that Iran will decisively respond to any breach by the Zionist entity.

Araghchi dismissed the notion of the Islamic Republic entering negotiations with any party aimed at cessation of the "Israeli" entity’s aggression, which started on June 13 and was completely unprovoked and unlawful, amid Iran-US indirect nuclear negotiations.

"We do not accept a ceasefire because a ceasefire is the product of negotiations or the result of an agreement between two parties to halt operations following dialogue and discussion," the foreign minister said.

"We do not accept any ceasefire or halt in operations that implies an agreed-upon arrangement."

Araghchi said Iran has "serious doubts" concerning "Israel's" commitment to cessation of its aggression, given its past record, especially in Gaza and Lebanon.

"They declare a truce, but assume that the other side is weak, then proceed to violate it themselves and attempt to prevent any response."

He, however, asserted that Iran is not Lebanon, and any breach will be met with a swift and decisive response from the Iranian armed forces, echoing top military commanders, including chief of staff of the Iranian armed forces Major General Abdolrahim Mousavi and Islamic Revolutionary Guards [IRG] commander-in-chief Major General Mohammad Pakpour, who have in recent statements warned against any new aggression.

Araghchi also touched on the potential of resuming talks with the United States, which were abruptly shelved following the "Israeli" aggression on June 13.

"Whether we will specifically return to talks with the United States is under review and depends on our national interests," he asserted.

Even before the "Israeli" aggression, the Americans had been mounting pressure on Iran based on false accusations of Iran pursuing a nuclear weapons program.

However, Araghchi asserted that there is no talk of negotiations at the moment, noting that the words of the US president must not be taken too seriously.

Araghchi said the fact that so many countries and international organizations came forward to express their support for Iran during the "Israeli"-imposed war shows the rising clout of the country internationally.

"Support for Iran in this war translates into our having entered a global arena to prove the rightfulness of the Iranian people, our positions and principles, and to garner international backing," the top diplomat stated.

On Iran’s missile strikes at a US base in Qatar, in response to US airstrikes on three nuclear sites, Iran’s foreign minister said the message was directed at the United States, not Arab countries, including Qatar.

Even before the attack, during the meeting of the foreign ministers of Islamic countries, Araghchi said he met with all six ministers and remained in contact with them.

“I clearly explained to them that if the United States attacks us, while our missiles may not yet reach American soil, they can reach nearby US bases. And we would have no choice but to retaliate against those bases, which, unfortunately, are located in your countries,” he said, quoting the message he communicated to his Arab counterparts.

He said the only message Iran wants to send to its neighboring countries is the message of friendship, good relations, and neighborliness.

“When the attack took place, the Qataris were understandably upset. The Persian Gulf Cooperation Council [GCC] countries were also displeased. But we had already clarified that our issue is with the Americans, not with them,” he noted.

“The very next day, an emergency PGCC foreign ministers’ meeting was held in Doha to express solidarity with Qatar. I contacted each of the six GCC foreign ministers and said: ‘Include my name under the statement of solidarity with Qatar. We also stand in solidarity with Qatar and support it.’ But the issue of US bases is completely separate.”

He said Iran had documented evidence that these bases are used by the US against Iran, in support of the "Israeli" entity, without the knowledge of their hosts.

“I firmly emphasize that our policy is to expand good neighborly relations, especially with the Gulf Cooperation Council, across the entire Persian Gulf region, with Iraq, and even beyond,” he asserted.

Referring to the "Israeli" aggression against Iran, Araghchi said these 12 days will be recorded in history as “a symbol of a nation's resistance against a coalition of powers backing the Zionist entity."

He underscored how the Islamic Republic was targeted during this period by the two nuclear-armed parties, namely the Zionist entity and the United States, who entered the war by attacking Iran's peaceful sites, noting how the war efforts were supported by European countries.

"They all mobilized to break the Islamic Republic down and force it to surrender in order to end a nearly-50-year fight against American imperialism, but failed," he said.

The Iranian people joining ranks towards fighting off this aggression "proved Iran's and Iranians' invincibility to the world, and put our [power of] resistance on display."

The top diplomat said the aggressors resorted to direct war after decades of deploying various instruments of pressure against the Iranian nation, including threats and sanctions.

Moreover, Araghchi said the aggression unleashed by the "Israel", as well as the US, which is a permanent member of the United States, represents a blow to the credibility of the NPT.

“It goes beyond just discrediting the NPT, it undermines the entire non-proliferation regime, a system that has been years in the making, through disarmament conferences, the United Nations, and other institutions, to supposedly make the world safer,” he noted.

The non-proliferation regime, he said, stipulates that nuclear-armed states must move toward disarmament, while non-nuclear states commit not to pursue weapons, in exchange for access to the peaceful use of nuclear energy.

“That is the essence of the NPT. But in practice, nuclear-armed states have not only failed to disarm, they have expanded and enhanced their arsenals. Meanwhile, non-nuclear states that pledged not to pursue weapons have faced increasing restrictions on their peaceful programs, restrictions not even mentioned in the NPT.”

He said the Western powers have spent years weakening the NPT themselves.

“Our decisions are based on the national interest. What matters above all to us is the supreme interest of the country and the Iranian people. Whether that interest leads us in one direction or another in order to secure the people’s rights—that is what will guide our choices,” he added.