Iran worries U.S. will use nuclear talks as pretext for new attacks: Senior official

Iran's nuclear negotiator Kazem Gharibabadi stated that Iran is willing to return to negotiations with the US, but only if convinced that the talks are not a cover for further military action. Gharibabadi expressed distrust towards the US, citing their simultaneous discussion of war plans with Israel while coordinating talks with Tehran. Iran is set to hold talks with the "E3" (France, Germany, and the UK) on Friday to discuss "snapback" sanctions, which could be imposed if Iran does not comply with the 2015 nuclear deal. Gharibabadi noted that the deadline for imposing these sanctions is the end of August, but suggested it was a soft deadline. He emphasized that Iran wants assurances on the Trump administration's seriousness before returning to the negotiating table. Gharibabadi also criticized the IAEA for not condemning Israeli and US attacks on Iran's nuclear facilities. Iran has invited a technical team from the IAEA to visit Tehran, but not to visit the nuclear sites. Gharibabadi stated that Iran is willing to discuss a new modality for cooperation with the IAEA, including access to nuclear sites that were not attacked. The US has proposed resuming talks, but Gharibabadi insisted that any talks would be indirect, conducted through mediators, due to a lack of trust in the US.