Tehran, Oct. 21 -- Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has declared that Washington's long-standing dispute over Tehran's nuclear program is merely an "excuse", asserting that the Islamic Republic honoured the conditions of the previous international agreements, only to watch the US "abandon" it unreasonably.

In an interview with Iraq's Al-Ikhbariya network, Araghchi stated that Washington's ultimate opposition lies in Iran's refusal to accept American hegemony in the Middle East.

"The nuclear issue is an excuse; what the Americans oppose and do not accept is Iranian ideology. They completely reject the Iranian perspective, which emphasises confronting American dominance and not surrendering to its power. This is the same thinking t...