Iran rejects US talks under "Maximum Pressure", Deputy FM
Shafaq News/ Iran will not engage in negotiations with the United States while under the Trump administration’s “maximum pressure” campaign, Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Saturday.
Rejecting talks that he described as tantamount to surrender, “Lifting sanctions requires negotiations, but not under the framework of ‘maximum pressure,’ because in that case, it would not be negotiations but a form of submission,” Araghchi said in a statement.
Araghchi reaffirmed Iran’s stance, saying, “Iran does not wish to negotiate with a country that imposes new sanctions at the same time.”
His remarks came a day after Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei urged the Iranian government to avoid talks with Washington, calling such a step “reckless” and citing past US failures to uphold agreements with Tehran.
Iran reached a nuclear deal in 2015 with the United States, France, Germany, Britain, China, and Russia, agreeing to limit its nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief. However, then-President Donald Trump withdrew from the accord in 2018, reinstating harsh economic sanctions despite opposition from European allies.
Last Wednesday, Trump reiterated his support for a “peace deal” with Iran but insisted that Tehran must never acquire nuclear weapons.
Meanwhile, the US Treasury Department announced fresh sanctions on Thursday, targeting a global network accused of facilitating the shipment of millions of barrels of Iranian crude oil worth hundreds of millions of dollars to China.
