‘We will enter the negotiating room in Geneva with complete honesty and good faith,’ Majid Takht-Ravanchi says
“We are ready to reach an agreement as soon as possible. We will do whatever it takes to make this happen,” said Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht-Ravanchi. PHOTO: REUTERS
Iran is prepared to take any necessary steps to reach a deal with the United States, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht-Ravanchi said on Tuesday, ahead of a fresh round of talks.
The negotiations are scheduled for Thursday in Geneva, a senior US official said on Monday, with US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner set to meet an Iranian delegation. Talks resumed earlier this month amid US military buildup in the Middle East. Iran has warned it would strike US bases in the region if attacked.
“We are ready to reach an agreement as soon as possible. We will do whatever it takes to make this happen. We will enter the negotiating room in Geneva with complete honesty and good faith,” Takht-Ravanchi said, according to state media.
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White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Tuesday that President Donald Trump prefers diplomacy as the first option but is prepared to use lethal force if necessary.
A senior Iranian official told Reuters that Tehran may consider sending half of its most highly enriched uranium abroad, diluting the rest and participating in a regional enrichment consortium — ideas periodically discussed in past Iran-linked diplomacy.
In return, Iran would seek US recognition of its right to “peaceful nuclear enrichment” under a deal that would also lift economic sanctions.
“If there is an attack or aggression against Iran, we will respond according to our defence plans … A US attack on Iran is a real gamble,” Takht-Ravanchi added.
Indirect talks last year yielded no agreement, largely due to US insistence that Iran halt uranium enrichment on its soil, which Washington views as a potential pathway to nuclear weapons — something Iran denies seeking.
Last June, the US and Israel struck Iranian nuclear sites, halting uranium enrichment, though Iran is still believed to retain previously enriched stockpiles.
