Any demands for financial compensation by the Iranian regime "are ridiculous," State Department Principal Deputy Spokesman Tommy Pigott said Thursday after Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told the Financial Times that America must agree on compensation before nuclear negotiation since the U.S. devastated Iran's nuclear sites.
"If the Iranian regime really wanted to save money or alleviate some of the sanctions policy, they would stop taking destabilizing actions," Pigott said at a State Department press briefing.
"They would stop wasting money on their nuclear program. They would stop sending money to terrorist death squads across the region. They would stop oppressing their own people. So if they really wanted to save money or find a way toward prosperity for their people, they would start taking those actions."
He added, "So any demands for financial compensation for the United States are ridiculous, but to stress, the United States is ready to talk with Iran. Iran has a short window of opportunity, but the ball is in Iran's court, so we're waiting to see what they do in terms of now it's in their court."
Araghchi told the Financial Times that Iran would not agree to "business as usual" in the wake of the 12-day conflict with Israel.
"They should explain why they attacked us in the middle of … negotiations, and they have to ensure that they are not going to repeat that [during future talks]," he said in an interview in Tehran. "And they have to compensate [Iran for] the damage that they have done."
He also said the road to negotiation with the U.S. on a nuclear program "is narrow, but it's not impossible."
"I need to convince my hierarchy that if we go for negotiation, the other side is coming with real determination for a win-win deal," he said.
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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