Iran’s Foreign Ministry:

No Prospect of Negotiations With U.S.

Date: 28 May 2019 - 22:09

News ID: ۶۶۴۸۷

TEHRAN (Dispatches) -- Iran sees no prospect of negotiations with the United States, a foreign ministry spokesman said on Tuesday, a day after U.S. President Donald Trump said a deal with Tehran on its nuclear program was possible.
Washington withdrew last year from a 2015 international nuclear deal with Tehran, and is ratcheting up sanctions in efforts to strangle Iran’s economy by ending its international sales of crude oil.
Trump said on Monday: "I really believe that Iran would like to make a deal, and I think that’s very smart of them, and I think that’s a possibility to happen.”
Asked about Trump’s comments in a news conference in Tehran, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi was quoted as saying by the Fars news agency: "We currently see no prospect of negotiations with America.”
"Iran pays no attention to words; What matters to us is a change of approach and behavior.”
Trump also said that United States was not looking for regime change in Iran, adding that "we are looking for no nuclear weapons.”
Iranian Vice President Es’haq Jahangiri said on Tuesday the country was not allowed to pursue the development of nuclear weapon as this was banned by Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei.
Tehran insists that it will not hold direct talks with the U.S. government anytime soon despite Trump saying Washington would "like to talk” if Iran was ready.
Mousavi said that Iran wants the United States to pledge itself again to the nuclear agreement and to lift its sanctions on Iran. He also called on Europe to implement the agreement by the beginning of July, with particular weight placed on the lifting of all economic sanctions.
Iran earlier this month rolled back parts of its commitments under the nuclear deal and gave an ultimatum to the remaining world powers involved if they did not provide sanctions relief.
Mousavi warned that if sanctions relief is not offered Tehran "will with severity take the next steps,” meaning it could turn its back on more substantial parts of the accord.
The spokesman also confirmed that the date of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's visit to Tehran is being coordinated, calling the trip a "turning point".
Japanese media have reported that Abe is considering a visit to Iran next month. The Kyodo News agency, citing unidentified government sources, said Friday that Abe's visit would be likely in mid-June.
Abe said on Monday that Japan "wants to do all that it can" to resolve the Iran-U.S. conflict.
Iranian Foreign Minister Muhammad Javad Zarif, who visited Tokyo earlier this month, appeared unimpressed with Japan's offer to mediate in the crisis. He said Trump should make his intentions clear about any talks with Iran through actions, not words.
Zarif said in a late Monday tweet: "Actions - not words -will show whether or not that's real Donald Trump’s intent.”
In Japan on Monday, Trump said he'd back Abe's efforts to open a communication with Iran. "I do believe Iran would like to talk and if they'd like to talk, we'll talk also," Trump said.
Iran has said it has no interest in negotiations with Washington following Trump's pullout from the nuclear deal and the re-imposing of sanctions on Iran. Zarif in his tweet also blamed Trump's economic pressure on Iran for the regional tensions.
Tensions have risen between Iran and the United States since Washington deployed a carrier strike group and bombers and announced plans to deploy 1,500 troops to the Middle East, prompting fears of a conflict.
Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) said Tuesday it doesn't fear a possible war with the United States, adding America hasn't grown in power in recent years.
"The enemy is not more powerful than before," said IRGC spokesman Gen. Ramazan Sharif.
Speaking at a press conference here, Sharif said the IRGC doesn't "support engaging in any war" while at the same time it doesn't "fear the occurrence of a war."
"We have enough readiness to defend the country," he said, adding that Iran has boosted its military power over the past 30 years.