News- Middle East: A senior Iranian political official has told Press TV that Iran will not enter new negotiations with the US under the previous framework or agenda, applying lessons learned from earlier talks.

The official, who requested anonymity, stressed Thursday that any negotiations must be consistent with the security realities of the region.

“For now, we think the purpose of the negotiations is to disarm Iran to make up for Israel’s weakness in the next war,” the official said.

“Our intelligence indicates Washington seeks talks to prepare for war, not peace. If so, we see no reason to waste time and would rather focus on preparing for conflict.”

The official added that any new round of negotiations must include “serious and practical guarantees” to ensure the process is not a cover for security deception.

The official outlined key conditions for talks, including serious attention to Israel’s nuclear program and its weapons of mass destruction.

“No one in the region will accept the disarmament of the region while such a bloodthirsty regime becomes more armed every day." 

The official stated that credible punishment of Israel and compensation to Iran are other conditions for negotiations; otherwise, negotiations will once again be a prelude to war.

“This is a problem for the United States, and we do not know how they intend to solve it," the official added.

Tehran and Washington were engaged in negotiations led by Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and US President Donald Trump's foreign envoy Steve Witkoff and had conducted five rounds of indirect talks mediated by Oman when Israel launched a series of unprovoked aggressions which upended the process.

“We must receive guarantees that Mr. Whitkoff is a mediator for a solution, not a firestarter for war. Providing such guarantees is very difficult, but we are ready to give one more chance and listen to what the US has to say on this matter and see its practical actions in this regard,” the Iranian official said Thursday. 

Source: Press TV