New Delhi, October 7, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Iran is ready for a serious dialogue with the United States to resolve the ongoing conflict, but any lasting agreement must be based on mutual respect, reciprocal commitments and a credible diplomatic process, Iranian Ambassador to India Mohammad Fathali said on Tuesday.
In an interview, Fathali said Tehran has consistently maintained that differences with Washington should be addressed through dialogue and diplomacy, while ruling out any agreement reached through pressure, threats or military action.
“To produce a result, dialogue must rest on mutual respect, reciprocal commitments and a reliable path for diplomacy,” Fathali said, while responding to reports that US President Donald Trump expects further talks with Iran this week.
He said the two sides continue to differ on fundamental issues, including how the conflict should end and the lifting of restrictions and sanctions.
“Iran is ready for serious dialogue and for a balanced, implementable agreement. But a lasting agreement cannot be reached through pressure, threats or military action,” the envoy said.
Fathali added that if Washington genuinely seeks a diplomatic solution, it must ensure that commitments by both sides are implemented simultaneously and verifiably. However, he cautioned against prejudging the outcome of any negotiations or assuming that they would necessarily result in a definitive agreement.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has also maintained that there is no military solution to the conflict.
Fathali said Tehran does not reject negotiations but objected to what he described as Washington’s tendency to present unilateral demands as negotiations.
“If the genuine objective is a diplomatic solution, conditions must be created for negotiations on an equal footing, with respect for the legitimate rights and interests of both sides,” he said.
On reports of changes in the US military presence in the region, including an Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps commander’s claim that American forces had been pushed back around 1,000 km from Iran’s borders, Fathali reiterated Tehran’s opposition to the presence of extra-regional forces.
He said Iran believes regional security should be managed by countries in the region through cooperation rather than by outside military powers.
“The countries of this region have lived alongside one another for thousands of years and have always addressed their issues through interaction and cooperation,” Fathali said, arguing that the experience of recent decades showed that external intervention had not produced lasting security and had instead contributed to tensions and insecurity.
The ambassador also rejected claims that crude oil flows from the Persian Gulf had recovered to near pre-conflict levels.
He said the apparent stabilisation in energy markets should not be interpreted as a restoration of oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz. According to Fathali, part of the reduction in supply had been offset by releases from strategic reserves and increased use of alternative routes.
“These alternative routes can make up part of the shortfall in the short term. But their capacity and efficiency cannot be compared with those of the Strait of Hormuz, and they cannot replace this vital route in the long term,” he said.
Fathali argued that the continued impact on oil and fuel prices was evidence that the energy market had not genuinely returned to pre-conflict conditions.
“What we are witnessing is a form of temporary management and compensation for the shortfall, not a genuine return of the energy market to pre-war conditions,” he said.
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