DUBAI, November 14. /TASS/. Iran will conduct negotiations on its nuclear program only taking into account national interests and will not accept external pressure and blackmail, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said after a meeting with International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi.
"Iran has never left the negotiation table on its peaceful nuclear program. The ball is in the court of the EU and the European Troika. We are willing to negotiate based on our national interests and our inalienable rights, but not ready to negotiate under pressure and intimidation," the top diplomat wrote on his X page.
The Iranian minister described the meeting with the IAEA chief as "important and straightforward" and called for resolving all differences through cooperation and dialogue.
The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) was signed with Tehran in 2015 by the five permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany to resolve the crisis over Iran's nuclear research. The pact marked the end of a crisis that began in 2004, when Western countries accused Iran of developing nuclear weapons and imposed sanctions. In 2018, US President Donald Trump withdrew from the agreement. The New York Times reported, citing Iranian officials, that Tehran believes that after Trump's recent victory in the presidential election, a new agreement with the US on the nuclear program, if reached, would be stronger and longer lasting. Earlier, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said that Iran does not seek nuclear weapons and is ready to fully return to its commitments under the JCPOA.