ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iran replied to United States President Donald Trump’s letter through Oman, instead of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) channel that Trump used because of its ties with Israel, a parliamentarian said on Friday.
“Based on the foreign minister's interview, we responded to Trump's letter, and according to my analysis, since the UAE has ties with the Israeli regime, we sent the letter to Oman instead,” Ahmad Anaraki Mohammadi, a member of Iranian parliament’s finance committee, told reporters at a Quds Day event, the state-run IRNA news agency reported.
Quds Day is an annual observance held on the last Friday of Ramadan. It was established in 1979 by then-Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini to express solidarity with the Palestinian people and opposition to Israel.
“We certainly gave a response in a way that we would not miss opportunities and would also address the threats,” he said. “God willing, this letter will be the beginning of making use of opportunities.”
On March 7, Trump told Fox Business that he had sent a letter to current Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, signaling openness to new nuclear negotiations, but threatened possible military action against Iran if it refuses to cooperate stating, “If we have to go in militarily, it’s going to be a terrible thing for them [Iran].”
The letter was delivered to Iran by a senior Emirati diplomat, according to the Associated Press.
Mohammadi said that indirect talks with Washington continue.
“We have been negotiating indirectly with the United States throughout all periods. In this round, with the arrival of Trump, the Americans have come to the negotiation table with a different rhetoric, but we know that America's policies have not changed at all,” he said.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Thursday said that Iran has responded to Trump’s letter through Oman and that Tehran will not engage directly with Washington as long as the US continues its maximum pressure campaign and military threats.
“Of course, this letter attempts to open a window for diplomacy. We carefully examined the letter, its various aspects were discussed, and its response was conveyed to the American side in an appropriate manner,” Araghchi said.
He had earlier described Trump’s message as “mostly threatening, but it also claims there are opportunities. We will examine the dimensions of both the threats and the opportunities,” but said “certain things have to change” for negotiations to begin again.
Under a 2015 nuclear deal - formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) - with world powers, Iran agreed to curb its nuclear enrichment program in exchange for much-needed relief from crippling sanctions. The deal began unraveling in 2018 when Trump, during his first term, unilaterally withdrew the US from the accord and reimposed biting sanctions on Iran.
Tehran waited a year and then gradually ramped up its nuclear activities.
After returning to office, Trump in early February restored his maximum pressure policy on Tehran, arguing that it is “too close” to a nuclear weapon.
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