WANA (Apr 22) – Seyed Abbas Araghchi, Iran’s Foreign Minister, was scheduled to deliver a virtual keynote speech yesterday at the Carnegie International Nuclear Policy Conference.

 

On social media platform X, Araghchi explained:

 

“When I initially agreed to deliver the keynote at the Carnegie International Nuclear Policy Conference, Iran and the United States had not yet set a date for the next round of negotiations, which are now scheduled to begin at the expert level on Wednesday and at the high level on Saturday.

 

Iran has no intention of negotiating in public.

 

In my speech, I made it clear that certain “special interest groups” are trying to manipulate the diplomatic process and derail it by discrediting negotiators and pressuring the U.S. government to adopt maximalist positions.

 

I am used to answering tough questions from journalists or addressing public concerns. However, turning a speech into an open Q&A either becomes a form of public negotiation—which I will not accept—or risks unsettling an audience that may be looking for negotiation details and outcomes.

 

I regret that my hosts were either unaware of or did not consider these sensitive dynamics.”

 

In a press briefing held yesterday, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei was asked whether the Foreign Minister would participate in the Carnegie International Nuclear Policy Conference in Washington. He responded: “He has been invited to the conference. I believe the session is scheduled for around 4 to 5 PM Iran time today, and we hope that depending on his schedule, he will be able to participate virtually and deliver his remarks.”

 

Yesterday the Permanent Mission of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the United Nations has announced that the scheduled virtual speech by Dr. Seyed Abbas Araghchi, Iran’s Foreign Minister, at the Carnegie International Nuclear Policy Conference has been canceled.

 

Araghchi has been officially invited to participate in the prestigious Carnegie Nuclear Policy Conference, held biennially in Washington, D.C.

 

The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace is one of the most respected think tanks in global affairs, and its biennial conference is considered one of the most significant gatherings in the field of nuclear policy.