Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghii has made it clear that his country will not return to the negotiating table before responding to the US attack on Iranian nuclear facilities last night. Following the bombing of the Fordow, Isfahan, and Natanz complexes, US President Donald Trump said that this was not the beginning of a military campaign but the"end" and urged Tehran to sign a peace agreement, but threatened further attacks if the Islamic Republic does not agree to negotiate. For his part, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has accused Washington of being responsible for the escalation of the war and noted that the recent bombing demonstrates that the White House is also behind the Israeli attacks that have rocked Iran for nine days and have caused more than 400 deaths. Among the responses Iran is considering is the closure of the Strait of Hormuz—crucial for global hydrocarbon trade—and, on Sunday, the Iranian Parliament called on the Supreme National Security Council to take this measure.
“The door to diplomacy must always remain open, but that is not the case currently. My country is under attack, and we must respond according to our right to self-defense. And we will do so as long as necessary,” the Iranian top diplomat stated during a question-and-answer session on the sidelines of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) foreign ministers' meeting, taking place this weekend in Istanbul. One of the objectives of the meeting was precisely to explore diplomatic avenues to end the crisis in the region that began with the Israeli bombing of Iran.
The ministers participating in the summit held a closed-door meeting Saturday night at Iran's request to review the situation."Yesterday we were discussing how to stop the Israeli aggression. Almost all the ministers in the region are very interested in playing an important role in stopping the Israeli aggression and were very concerned about a possible US attack," Aragchi explained.
The foreign minister described calls for Iran to seek a negotiated solution to the conflict as"irrelevant" and, with a clear expression of frustration, pointed out that his country was already"in talks with the United States when the Israelis blew them up" with the start of their attacks on Iran, and that Washington's attack came two days after he himself met in Geneva, Switzerland, with European representatives to try to find a negotiated solution to the conflict."They have made it clear that they are not men of diplomacy and that they only understand the language of threats and force. Which is a disgrace," he said.
Asked by the press, Aragchi declined to say what Iran's response would be:"We have a variety of options." Previously, Iranian leaders had threatened to attack US bases in the region (although most are located in countries that have expressed solidarity with Iran and condemned the Israeli attacks).
The Iranian Parliament is clear: the answer must be to close the Strait of Hormuz, which connects the Persian Gulf to the Indian Ocean and transits 20% of the world's daily oil needs and a similar amount of liquefied natural gas."Parliament has come to the conclusion that the Strait of Hormuz must be closed, but the final decision must be made by the Supreme National Security Council," said MP Esmaeil Kowsari, quoted by Iran's Press TV. The Supreme National Security Council includes representatives from the president, several ministers, the speaker of Parliament, religious and military leaders, and its decisions must be endorsed by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
Closing the Strait of Hormuz could substantially raise the price of hydrocarbons, but the decision carries significant risks for Iran, and not only because it would affect its own oil and gas exports. First, it would put it at odds with other producing countries that use the Strait of Hormuz, such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Iraq, and Kuwait, which until now have shown solidarity with Tehran. And second, it would begin to further affect Iran's allies, such as China. Of the 20 million barrels of oil that pass through the strait daily, 82% go to Asian markets, according to data from the US Energy Information Administration. Of the 20 million barrels of oil it puts on the market daily, 5 million are purchased by China, which obtains up to 40% of its oil needs from the Gulf littoral countries, a percentage similar to that of India.
Another possible retaliation, experts suggest, is an exit from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), ratified by Iran but not by Israel, which entails subjecting the nuclear programs of signatory countries to inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency. “Iran is under attack from a nuclear superpower [the US] and a nuclear-armed regime [Israel]. Iran is a non-nuclear-weapon country. So this must be condemned by the international community, otherwise the entire non-proliferation regime will collapse. Iran is a responsible member of the NPT, but the NPT has failed to protect us. So why should Iran or any other country interested in pursuing a peaceful nuclear program trust the NPT?” said Aragchi, who demanded an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council to “condemn” the US attack.
The Iranian minister is scheduled to travel to Moscow, where he will hold"serious talks" with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday morning to "coordinate positions." He also stated that he is in contact with China regarding the introduction of a resolution on the situation in the Security Council.
Aragchi attributed the US bombing to Israel's"failure" in its campaign of attacks on Iran."The Zionist regime has been defeated by the Iranian Armed Forces, and the only chance it had was with the support of the United States," he said. He also criticized Trump for"betraying" his campaign promises to end the wars in the Middle East: "He has deceived his voters by submitting to the will of a wanted war criminal [Benjamin Netanyahu], who has grown accustomed to exploiting the lives and wealth of American citizens to advance the Israeli regime's goals."
Pezeshkian accuses the US of being behind Israel.
President Pezeshkian further attacked the United States by accusing Washington of being the cause of the renewed conflict between Israel and Iran, since"the Zionist regime is neither in the position nor has the capacity or courage to attack the Islamic Republic of Iran alone." In this regard, he framed the missiles launched against Israel on Sunday morning as"a response to the aggressive policies of the United States." Perhaps an indication that, rather than directly attacking the United States—which would lead to a spiral of retaliation—Tehran prefers to increase its attacks on Israel. However, he also warned that his country"will spare no effort" to protect its territory.
"Last night's US attack on some of the country's nuclear facilities demonstrated that the United States is the primary cause of the Zionist regime's hostile actions against the Islamic Republic of Iran," the president said in a meeting with his cabinet, Europa Press reported.
