US embassy can reopen if trade ties resume, Iranian lawmaker says

A senior Iranian lawmaker said Tehran could consider reopening embassies with the United States if direct negotiations and trade ties resume.

“If an agreement with the United States takes shape and commercial relations are established, it is natural that the two countries would reopen their consulates and embassies,” said Beytollah Abdollahi, a member of parliament’s Planning and Budget Committee, according to the Iranian news outlet Rouydad24.

Abdollahi also appeared to push back against the notion that direct talks with Washington are off-limits. “It’s not like a verse from the Quran that says we must never negotiate directly with America,” he said.