DUBAI: Iran is ready to give the United States a chance to resolve disputes between the arch foes, a senior Iranian official said on Wednesday, a day after President Donald Trump restored his “maximum pressure” campaign on the country.

Earlier, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said that US concerns about Iran developing nuclear weapons were not a complicated issue and could be resolved given Tehran’s opposition to weapons of mass destruction.

“The clerical establishment’s will is to give diplomacy with Trump another chance, but Tehran is deeply concerned about Israel’s sabotage,” said the senior official. The official said Tehran wanted the United States to “rein in Israel if Washington is seeking a deal” with the Islamic Republic..

Trump’s “maximum pressure” campaign on Iran includes efforts to drive its oil exports down to zero in order to stop Tehran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. Tehran has long said its nuclear programme is entirely peaceful and it has no intention to build nuclear weapons. But with its regional allies either dismantled or gravely weakened since the start of the Hamas-Israel conflict in Gaza in Oct 2023, and mounting discontent among many Iranians at the state of the economy, analysts say the clerical establishment has few options other than to strike a deal with Trump.

US president says work on new Tehran nuclear deal should begin ‘immediately’

The fall of Bashar al-Assad in Syria in December, a crucial ally of Tehran, has severely disrupted Tehran’s “Axis of Resistance”, a network of regional armed groups, militants and allied states, to counter Israel and the United States, while asserting its influence throughout the Middle East.

The official also said Tehran disagreed with “any displacement of Gazans, but Iran-US talks are a separate matter”, referring to Trump’s remarks that the US would take over conflict-stricken Gaza and create a “Riviera of the Middle East” after resettling Palestinians elsewhere.

“Iran does not agree with any displacement of Palestinians and has communicated this through various channels. However, this issue and the path of Irans nuclear agreement are two separate matters and should be pursued separately, the official said.

‘Verified nuclear peace agreement’

Trump on Wednesday called for a “verified nuclear peace agreement” with Iran, after withdrawing from a similar deal in his first term and instituting a so-called “maximum pressure” policy. On Tuesday, ahead of a meeting with Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump signed an order reinstating the “maximum pressure” policy against Iran over allegations the country is seeking a nuclear weapons capability.

“I want Iran to be a great and successful Country, but one that cannot have a Nuclear Weapon,” he said in a post on his Truth Social platform. “I would much prefer a Verified Nuclear Peace Agreement, which will let Iran peacefully grow and prosper.” The post echoed a similar message in his press conference a day earlier with Netanyahu, who also said Tehran could never have a nuclear weapon.

Trump dismissed reports that the United States was working with Israel “to blow Iran into smithereens” as “GREATLY EXAGGERATED.” “We should start working on it (the agreement) immediately, and have a big Middle East Celebration when it is signed and completed,” he said. “God Bless the Middle East!”

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told reporters he believed Trump’s maximum pressure policy “is a failed experiment and trying it again will turn into another failure.” He also reiterated that Tehran was not pursuing nuclear weapons. “If the main issue is that Iran does not pursue nuclear weapons, it is achievable and is not much of a problem,” Araghchi said.

Published in Dawn, February 6th, 2025