TEHRAN – Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi said Tuesday that the enemy suspended nuclear talks with Iran in the midst of the 2022 unrest in Iran but suggested a return to the negotiating table after the unrest subsided. 

Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday morning, President Raisi said Iran didn’t leave the negotiating table but worked to diversify its foreign policy options beyond the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

In describing the results of the enemy's strategy of disappointing the people inside the country, President Raisi stated, "The enemy tried to anger the people and create problems for the country with a massive cyber attack and disabling gas stations in the very days of the beginning of the Popular Administration, but it failed with the immediate action of the government and the vigilance and exemplary support of the people".

He added, "When the enemy saw the people's cooperation with the government and the government's reliance on internal capacities and the belief that "we can" and felt that the country was progressing, it tried to stop the growth process of Islamic Iran by creating disturbances, so even left the negotiation table in order to reach its goals through the path of creating disturbances".

President Raisi said the enemy rushed to suggest a return to the negotiating table after the riots failed.

"When the enemy saw that the riots failed with the help and presence of people on the scene, which we have witnessed in all fields, they immediately sent us a message that they want to return to the negotiation table," he said, according to a readout by the official website of the Iranian presidency.

President Raisi stated, "The enemy failed to advance both of his strategies and today, with the effort in the country, hope is increasing day by day in the hearts of the people".

He continued, "The Western parties who left the negotiation table regret today and are sending a message to return to the negotiation table. At the same time, along with this case, we have followed many other cases, including membership in regional and extra-regional coalitions".

President Raisi also addressed other issues relating to Iran’s foreign policy. Referring to the important role played by the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, especially in economic and security issues, he stated, "Considering the very high capacity of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the connection with the infrastructure of the member countries of Shanghai and the Asian continent is very important for us".

Stating that some people say that the solution to the problems depends on the smile of the Westerners, but we will never wait for their smile, President Raisi stated, "Coalitions such as BRICS and Shanghai are a great opportunity to flourish the country's economic capacities and also confront the unilateralism of the West".

Raising the issue that many heads of foreign countries are asking us, 'how are you progressing despite sanctions and threats!' he continued, "The art of the Iranian nation is to turn threats into opportunities, and it has done this very well so far".

President Raisi clarified, "Enemies think that our nation will stop with sanctions and threats, unaware that the Iranian nation is striving for success and this is the secret of the country's success".

In response to a reporter's question regarding the revival of the JCPOA, President Raisi said, "The government has followed the JCPOA as a case in the field of foreign policy from the beginning, but our foreign policy issue is not a single option like in the past".

The head of the Supreme National Security Council stated, "From the beginning of the Popular Administration's term of office, following the actions that had already been taken, we appointed a group to follow the work and conduct serious negotiations on a text that the Europeans also officially accepted and said that Iran's demands were accurate".

"Our negotiations were in line with the original agreement, because we did not have a contract at that time, but if we had, this agreement would have been more detailed, and these problems would not have arisen until today," he said.

President Raisi pointed out, "It was America and Europe that did not fulfill their obligations, but Iran fully adhered to its obligations. The International Atomic Energy Agency has declared 15 times that Iran's nuclear program is not deviant, but Western countries want to use the nuclear issue politically to put pressure on an independent country like Iran".

President Raisi added, "The government has not failed in the negotiations and plan of the nation's rights to realize the rights and remove the oppressive sanctions, and we are also active on the other front, which is to neutralize the sanctions".

Raisi also stated, "Today, the situation of the resistance movement in Lebanon, Syria and Palestine is completely different from the past. This difference can also be seen by looking at the state of the 6-day war of the Zionist regime with 6 Arab countries to the wars that were fought with the forces of resistance, which have become known as the 33-day, 22-day, 8-day and 2-day wars".

He pointed out that today the initiative in the region is in the hands of the Palestinian and Lebanese warriors, and noted, "Today the resistance movement is stronger than ever and the Zionist regime is more vulnerable than ever".