MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
President Trump sent a letter to Iran about opening new talks over its nuclear program.
A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
The president says he won't rule out military options either.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: We're down to the final moments. We're at final moments. Can't let them have a nuclear weapon.
MARTIN: Joining us now to explain Iran's response and what's at stake here is NPR international correspondent Aya Batrawy in Dubai. Aya, good morning to you.
AYA BATRAWY, BYLINE: Good morning, Michel.
MARTIN: So let's start with this letter. Trump has said the letter to Iran would be proposing nuclear talks to avert military action. So what can you tell us about Iran's response so far?
BATRAWY: So this letter was delivered by a senior Emirati official from Abu Dhabi who traveled to Tehran and met with Iran's foreign minister yesterday. But before it was even read by Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had this to say.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
SUPREME LEADER ALI KHAMENEI: (Speaking Farsi).
BATRAWY: So he's speaking to university students yesterday in televised remarks, saying the U.S. is trying to deceive global public opinion with this letter and that Iran is not ready to negotiate. And referring to Trump, he says this is the same person who tore up and threw out a signed agreement. Now, he's talking about Trump's decision in his first term as president to withdraw the U.S. from a nuclear deal that was reached under President Obama and included China, Russia and European countries. That deal put caps on Iran's nuclear program in exchange for lifting sanctions.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
KHAMENEI: (Speaking Farsi).
BATRAWY: So Khamenei says, "how could one possibly negotiate with such a person?" And he warned Iran can defend itself against threats.
MARTIN: Yeah. So he's referring here to what we call Trump's maximum pressure campaign on Iran in his first term. And it did ramp up tensions in the region where you are. So what can you tell us about how things are, where things stand right now?
BATRAWY: Well, despite Khamenei's sharp words, Michel, Iran's mission to the United Nations struck a different tone, saying in a post on X that if the objective of negotiations is to address concerns about the potential of nuclear weapons, these discussions may be subject to consideration, but that Iran would not dismantle its peaceful nuclear program. And important to note here, Iran's position has been that its nuclear program is for peaceful energy purposes and that it's not interested in building a nuclear weapon. That said, since Trump scuttled the nuclear deal in 2018, Iran has been increasing its stockpile of enriched uranium, according to U.N. inspectors. The U.K., France and Germany have continued talks with Iran about its nuclear program. And tomorrow, China, Russia and Iran are meeting in Beijing to discuss Iran's nuclear program and the sanctions that are crippling its economy.
MARTIN: And what is the view there from the Gulf Arab states like the UAE, which is where you are?
BATRAWY: So the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, these Gulf Arab states are playing the role of mediator on many different files, whether that's on Iran or Ukraine or in Gaza. And so the reason they can do this, though, is because while they view the U.S. as the most important military superpower, it's not the only player on the block. They've kept warm relations with Russia, for example, and it was China - if you recall - that brokered the deal that repaired ties between Iran and Saudi Arabia a few years ago. So yes, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, they want hard curbs on Iran's missile program and it's nuclear ambitions, and they would like to see its Shia militias in the region wiped out. But they do not want a region on edge or the kind of attacks on oil targets in the Gulf that we saw under Trump's first term when tensions were soaring.
MARTIN: That is NPR's Aya Batrawy in Dubai. Aya, thank you.
BATRAWY: Thanks, Michel. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
