TEHRAN – About ten hours after a UNSC session on Iran’s nuclear program concluded on Tuesday, as morning broke in Tehran, Iranian officials began to publicly react to remarks put forth by the U.S. during the meeting. Their reactions signaled that no one in Tehran trusts American pronouncements about diplomacy anymore.

Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi appeared to mock the American delegate’s comments regarding the Trump administration’s supposed penchant for diplomacy. In a post on X, Araghchi stated that Washington had forged a new definition for diplomacy, where Americans proclaim, “we are ready for a meaningful negotiation but forget about your internationally recognized rights.”

“This is dictation, not negotiation, let alone a meaningful one,” the top diplomat stated. “The world witnessed how we were negotiating when the U.S. opted to open fire on our people and torpedoed diplomacy. We did what we always do: resist and confront those who assault us, and make sure they regret it.” Araghchi further urged Americans to pursue real and honest diplomacy instead of attempting to deceive the world.

During an open parliamentary session on Wednesday, an Iranian lawmaker declared that Tehran saw no need to negotiate with “the biggest deceivers and liars of the world.”

Another reaction came from Iran’s Foreign Ministry Spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei, who told an Iranian media outlet that Washington’s declarations about diplomacy are mere “propaganda” designed to mislead public opinion. “The statements made by the U.S. representative are neither a proposal nor a diplomatic action, but rather a repetition of excessive demands that have no basis or logic within the framework of international law and the non-proliferation regime,” Baghaei explained. He also emphasized that as a member of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), the Islamic Republic’s right to utilize nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, including enrichment, is an inalienable right.

During the UNSC session, U.S. Deputy Special Envoy for West Asia Morgan Ortagus claimed that Washington is "extending the hand of diplomacy" towards Iran. She, however, did not expound on Washington's decision to derail earlier negotiations with Tehran. The U.S. joined Israel in attacking Iranian civilian, nuclear, and military facilities back in June only days before it was scheduled to attend a sixth round of nuclear talks in Oman.    

Before scrapping the 2025 negotiations, the U.S. had withdrawn from an international accord on Iran’s nuclear program in 2018. That agreement, called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) took at least two years to negotiate.