TEHRAN, Dec. 31 (Xinhua) -- Though it does not fear war, Iran "has never sought a conflict" with the United States, and is open to "genuine and serious" negotiations, Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said Tuesday.
He made the remarks on X a day after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened Iran with a major military strike if it resumed its ballistic missile or nuclear weapons programs.
Noting that Iran has never sought conflict with the United States, Araghchi said Iran's armed forces remain fully prepared to respond to any aggression with decisive measures.
"Our restraint, which should not be mistaken for weakness, is the only reason American military installations in our region remained intact," he said, adding that "Iranians do not shy away from genuine and serious negotiations aimed at achieving a fair and balanced agreement on issues of mutual interest."
Though Iran and its people do not seek nuclear weapons, Iranians would never give up on their "lawful rights," he said.
Araghchi noted that Washington could either continue to rely on "narratives manufactured by Israel" that "only produced instability, miscalculation, and strategic failure," or pursue a path "grounded in realism, diplomacy, and mutual respect."
In a letter addressed to other countries' foreign ministers, Araghchi described Trump's anti-Iran threats on Monday as being in "flagrant violation" of international law and the United Nations (UN) Charter, according to a statement released by the ministry early Wednesday.
He said threatening to use force against Iran was in clear violation of the UN Charter, "which has banned any such threats or resorting to force against states' territorial integrity and national sovereignty," calling on his foreign counterparts to condemn recent threats and "provocative" remarks by Trump.
Tensions between Iran and the United States, Israel have escalated after a series of strikes in June.
On June 13, Israel launched airstrikes on several locations in Iran, including nuclear and military sites, killing senior commanders, nuclear scientists and civilians. On June 22, U.S. forces bombed the Iranian nuclear facilities at Natanz, Fordow and Isfahan. ■
