Pejman: Iran is Principally Ready to Negotiate with Trump's Second Administration

The President of Iran stated that the Islamic Republic has never had a plan to kill Donald Trump and has no interest in military confrontation. He added that Iran is fundamentally ready to negotiate with Donald Trump's second administration. Simultaneously, a figure close to the office of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic claimed in a press note that negotiating with the U.S. is 'a betrayal to the entire world.' Masoud Pejman, in an interview with NBC News aired on Tuesday, January 25, just less than a week before Trump's inauguration, rejected claims made by the U.S. President-elect and officials of the current administration under Joe Biden regarding this matter. The U.S. Department of Justice had accused an Iranian man about two months ago of being connected to a plot allegedly devised by the Quds Force of the Revolutionary Guards to kill Donald Trump. According to American officials, this plot was neutralized before execution. Trump himself had claimed during his election campaign that the Iranian government might have been involved in plans to kill him. However, Pejman firmly denied this accusation in his NBC interview, stating that Iran has never had such an intention and will not have it. Iran has denied attempts to kill Trump in a 'written letter to the U.S. government.' Donald Trump survived two assassination attempts during his election campaign; the first in the summer in Butler, Pennsylvania, where a bullet grazed his ear, and then about two months later in Florida on a golf course. Investigators and security officials have not provided any evidence linking Tehran to these two incidents. The Islamic Republic has also previously rejected U.S. claims of attempting to interfere in American internal affairs, including elections. According to NBC, Pejman, who presents himself as a moderate, stated in the interview that 'Iran is fundamentally ready to negotiate with Trump's second administration.' However, he claimed that the United States has not adhered to its commitments in the past and has sought to overthrow the Islamic Republic. In another part of the interview, while emphasizing that Iran does not seek to acquire nuclear weapons, he warned Trump about the danger of war and expressed hope that the U.S. President-elect would be committed to peace and stability in the region and the world and would not pursue bloodshed and war. He also emphasized 'Tehran's proportional response to any action,' stating that Iran is not afraid of war but does not seek it either. The President of Iran raised this issue in response to a question regarding Trump's green light for a potential Israeli attack on Iran's nuclear facilities. Trump had mentioned such a possibility during his election campaign. Pejman responded to Lester Holt of NBC regarding the possibility of dialogue between the two countries after Trump's return, stating, 'The problem is not the two sides of the dialogue but the commitment and adherence to the content of the discussions.' He further reminded that 'it was the U.S. that did not adhere to its promises and obligations.' He reiterated that Iran is fundamentally ready to negotiate with Trump's second administration. The publication of the Iranian President's statements about negotiating with the U.S. coincided with the release of a note by Mehdi Fazeli, a member of the office of 'Preservation and Publication of Ali Khamenei's Works,' in which he outlined reasons for opposing renewed negotiations with the U.S. This figure close to Ali Khamenei's office claimed in the note published on Wednesday, January 26, in the 'Hamshahri' newspaper, that negotiating with the U.S. 'would play a very important role in reviving U.S. hegemony and is a betrayal to the entire world.' Fazeli cited 'the U.S. failure in its plans to overthrow the Islamic Republic' and 'multiple failures in achieving its plans to solidify' Israel as reasons for this claim, asserting that strategic analysts worldwide have concluded that 'confronting the U.S. and defeating this country is possible.' In 2015, Iran reached a nuclear agreement known as the JCPOA with Western powers, including the United States, under which, in exchange for lifting U.S. and European sanctions against Tehran, the Islamic Republic would limit the dimensions of its nuclear program. However, in 2018, coinciding with Trump's presidency, the U.S. exited the JCPOA. In response, the Islamic Republic gradually deviated from its JCPOA commitments, including increasing the amount and concentration of uranium enrichment; a matter that ultimately led to the issuance of two critical resolutions by the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency last year. While many countries, including the three European powers involved in the JCPOA, express skepticism about the possibility of reviving this agreement, Abbas Araghchi, Iran's foreign minister and a senior negotiator during the JCPOA talks, claims that Europe is 'seriously ready' to resume nuclear negotiations. Araghchi emphasized that until the Trump administration returns to the JCPOA or clearly announces its policy regarding it, Tehran will not be willing to engage in nuclear talks with Washington.