Iran to counter US 'maximum pressure' with 'maximum resistance': FM
7 Min Read
During a UN Security Council session on Thursday, Iran’s ambassador to the UN accused Washington and its allies of attempting to interfere in Iran’s constructive engagement with the IAEA.
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Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi speaks in a joint press briefing with his Omani counterpart Sayyid Badr Albusaidi after their meeting in Tehran, Iran, on Monday, December 30, 2024. (AP)
Iran will not engage in direct talks with the United States unless its national interests are secured and the negotiations are free from pressure and threats, stressed Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.
In statements to a local newspaper, Araghchi reaffirmed that his country will not negotiate under "maximum pressure", as such negotiations will not fulfill its demands, stressing that Iran's strategy to counter the maximum pressure policy is "maximum resistance".
The top Iranian diplomat said that the Europeans have previously acted as intermediaries with the United States, and they can do so again.
Earlier on Wednesday, Araghchi confirmed that Iran had received a letter from US President Donald Trump, conveyed by Anwar Gargash, diplomatic advisor to the president of the United Arab Emirates.
Araghchi made the announcement on his Instagram account, just hours after hosting Gargash at the Iranian Foreign Ministry in Tehran.
“This afternoon, I hosted Mr. Anwar Gargash, the diplomatic adviser to the president of the United Arab Emirates. In addition to talks on mutual and regional issues, a letter from the United States’ president was received as well,” the senior Iranian diplomat said.
According to the official Telegram page of the Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Gargash emphasized the significance of UAE-Iran relations and the need for ongoing dialogue to advance mutual interests.
He also expressed Abu Dhabi’s willingness to enhance cooperation with Tehran across various sectors.
Araghchi further noted that Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian’s administration remains committed to strengthening ties with regional and neighboring countries.
Last week, Trump said he had written a letter to the Leader of the Islamic Revolution and the Islamic Republic of Iran, Sayyed Ali Khamenei, urging talks to negotiate a new deal on Iran's nuclear program or risk potential military action.
However, Iran has firmly rejected negotiations under the "maximum pressure" policy, which Trump reinstated after returning to office in January.
On Tuesday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian ruled out negotiations with the United States under current circumstances, stating that Tehran will not engage in talks while under threats.
Under this policy, Trump withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal and reimposed broad sanctions on Iran, while adding new measures.
In February, Sayyed Khamenei reiterated his stance against negotiations with the US, citing Washington’s exit from the nuclear agreement. Last week, he condemned the "bullying" tactics of certain governments, asserting that their calls for negotiations were driven by a desire for dominance, rather than conflict resolution.
On Wednesday, Sayyed Khamenei dismissed US threats against the Islamic Republic as "unwise", affirming that "Iran is capable of retaliating and will definitely inflict a blow."
"We sat down and negotiated for several years, and this same person threw the finished, completed, and signed agreement off the table and tore it up," he pointed out, referring to Washington’s withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal during Trump’s first term.
Iran’s UN envoy rejects US, UK, France’s claims on nuclear activity
Meanwhile, Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations firmly rejected accusations by the United States, the United Kingdom, and France regarding Tehran’s cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Press TV reported.
During a UN Security Council session on Thursday—convened by the US and its allies to discuss what they described as Iran’s “insufficient” cooperation with the IAEA—Ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani dismissed the claims.
The meeting followed a closed-door Security Council session a day earlier, where the three countries accused Iran of possessing impermissible levels of enriched uranium.
“Washington has openly declared, in its own official documents, that it seeks to weaponize the Security Council as part of its strategy to intensify economic warfare against Iran,” Iravani said. He urged the Council to reject such manipulation and uphold international legal principles.
“This is not a legitimate discussion on non-proliferation—it is a blatant political maneuver and a misuse of the Security Council to advance narrow agendas,” he added, warning that such actions undermine the credibility of the Council.
Iravani categorically rejected the premise of the meeting, emphasizing that the concerns raised by the US and its allies fall within the exclusive jurisdiction of the IAEA and had already been addressed during last week’s IAEA Board of Governors session in Vienna.
He accused Washington and its allies of attempting to interfere in Iran’s constructive engagement with the IAEA, describing it as a continuation of the US' failed “maximum pressure” policy against Tehran.
The envoy stressed that Iran remains one of the most heavily monitored members of the IAEA. “Despite these facts, certain Western countries, particularly the United States, the UK, France, and Germany, have persistently sought to create a false narrative about Iran’s nuclear activities, alleging non-cooperation and military ambitions,” he stated.
“Iran’s nuclear program is peaceful, and it will remain so. We categorically reject Weapons of Mass Destruction, including nuclear weapons,” he reaffirmed, reiterating Tehran’s commitment to non-proliferation.
Iravani also pointed to Western violations of agreements concerning Iran, which he said are consistently ignored. He highlighted that it was the United States that unilaterally withdrew from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) in 2018, in direct violation of UN Security Council Resolution 2231, which endorsed the deal.
“It was the United States that re-imposed illegal sanctions, punishing the Iranian people, while the UK, France, and Germany failed to uphold their commitments,” he noted.
The Iranian diplomat also accused Washington of coercing other states into violating Resolution 2231 and criticized the UK for incorporating expired EU sanctions into its domestic law after the JCPOA’s restrictions lapsed in October 2023.
Despite these provocations, Iran exercised “strategic patience” for over a year following the US withdrawal, fully complying with its JCPOA obligations while pursuing diplomatic solutions, according to Iravani.
He clarified that only after exhausting all diplomatic avenues did Tehran begin a phased and reversible response in accordance with Paragraph 26 of the JCPOA, stressing that Iran's actions were legally justified.
“Iran has not violated the JCPOA. Those who abandoned their commitments—first and foremost the United States—bear full responsibility for the current situation,” he asserted
Iravani reiterated that Iran remains committed to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and the IAEA’s Safeguards Agreement, dismissing allegations that its nuclear activities had strayed from peaceful purposes.
“The NPT imposes no limits on Iran’s level of uranium enrichment,” he noted, adding that “any restrictions that ever existed were within the JCPOA—an agreement that the United States deliberately sabotaged.”
The Iranian ambassador further emphasized that, despite the suspension of some JCPOA provisions, his country's nuclear program remains under continuous IAEA oversight.
Iravani warned against the Security Council being used as a tool by nations that violate its resolutions while demanding compliance from others. He insisted that Resolution 2231 must be fully implemented and expire as agreed.
At the same time, he reiterated Iran’s refusal to negotiate under pressure.
"Iran will not negotiate under pressure. We will not surrender to threats. We will not accept dictates. Diplomacy must be conducted on the basis of mutual respect, not extortion,” he underscored.
The diplomat explained that “if there is to be a path forward, it must begin with accountability—for those who abandoned their commitments, imposed illegal sanctions, and undermined diplomacy,” Iravani asserted.
“Iran will continue to defend its rights. We will continue to stand firm against coercion.”
Read more: Iran rejects forced talks, stresses nuclear program's peaceful nature
