Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi has underlined the Islamic Republic’s decision to maintain its policy of resistance against aggressors, stating that no negotiations are underway.
“At present, our policy is to continue resistance, and no negotiations have taken place,” the top diplomat said in a televised interview on Wednesday.
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“There are no negotiations underway,” he reiterated, while also questioning the reliability of outside assurances. According to Press TV, regional diplomatic contacts have taken place, but Tehran’s position has remained unchanged. “Many foreign ministers from the region have contacted Tehran, but Iran’s position has remained principled and firm.”
‘Inherent Guarantee Created by Reprisal’
Referring to reported efforts by third countries to act as intermediaries toward ending the unlawful aggression that has prompted Iran’s decisive retaliation, Araqchi stated, “International guarantees are not 100 percent reliable.”
“Through the inherent guarantee that we created ourselves, no one will dare again to go to war with the Iranian people,” he added, pointing to Iran’s reprisal in which the country’s Armed Forces have launched at least 81 waves of counterstrikes against sensitive American and Israeli targets across the region.
‘Enemy Must Learn a Lasting Lesson’
The foreign minister asserted, “A ceasefire without guarantees is a vicious cycle that only leads to the repetition of war.”
“The enemy must learn a lesson so that it never again even contemplates launching another attack, and the damages suffered by the Iranian people must be compensated,” he said.
US Bases a ‘Liability’ for Host Countries
Araqchi said recent developments had shown how allowing the United States to establish outposts in regional territories compromises the security of host countries rather than enhancing it.
“This war revealed many truths, one of them being that US bases not only failed to provide security for the host countries, but, in fact, became a source of insecurity for them,” he said, referencing repeated strikes by Iranian Armed Forces on US outposts in states such as Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan in retaliation for the aggression and the host countries’ collaboration with aggressors.
“If these countries are being struck, it is because of the presence of those bases,” he said. “My message to the countries of the region is that they must definitely distance themselves from this American-Zionist aggression against the soil and people of Iran, and separate themselves from this war.”
The foreign minister also lamented that some regional countries had previously stated they would not allow their soil to be used against Iran before going back on their words. “We cannot believe that this occurred without those countries being aware of it,” he said.
Retaliation Marks ‘Golden Moment’ in Iran’s History
Araqchi commented on the trajectory of the aggression and Iran’s determined counterstrikes, which have seen the Armed Forces fire hundreds of ballistic and hypersonic missiles along with attack drones against hostile targets.
He said the enemy failed to accomplish several of its objectives, including dividing the country, securing a swift victory, and undermining domestic cohesion. Iran’s reprisal, he added, has gone down as “a golden moment” in its history, with the country preventing two nuclear-armed aggressors from reaching their goals.
The foreign minister noted that the aggressors’ current calls for talks—despite initially demanding Tehran’s “unconditional surrender”—amount to an admission of defeat. “The fact that they are now talking about negotiations is itself an admission of defeat. Weren’t they the ones talking about ‘unconditional surrender’? So why are they now mobilizing their highest-ranking officials to pursue negotiations?” Araqchi asked.
Strait of Hormuz: Open to Friends, Closed to Enemies
On the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has closed to enemies and their accomplices since the onset of the aggression late last month, Araqchi said the strategic waterway remained open to friendly countries.
“For some countries that we identified as our friends, we allowed passage through the Strait of Hormuz. We allowed China, Russia, India, Iraq, and Pakistan to pass,” he said. “There is no reason for us to allow our enemy to pass through the Strait of Hormuz.”
Source: Iranian media (edite dby Al-Manar)