Tag: Khamenei

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei yesterday rejected an offer of renewed talks from U.S. President Donald Trump and denied his assertion that the United States has destroyed Iran’s nuclear capabilities.

Tehran and Washington engaged in five rounds of indirect nuclear negotiations that ended with the 12-day air war in June in which Israel and the U.S. bombed Iranian nuclear sites.

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“Trump says he is a dealmaker, but if a deal is accompanied by coercion and its outcome is predetermined, it is not a deal but rather an imposition and bullying,” Khamenei said according to state media.

Last week, Trump told the Israeli parliament that it would be great if Washington could negotiate a “peace deal” with Tehran, following the start of a ceasefire in Gaza between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas.

“The U.S. president proudly says they bombed and destroyed Iran’s nuclear industry. Very well, keep dreaming!” Khamenei added.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said any attack by the U.S. or Israel would be met with “a firm retaliatory strike,” after President Donald Trump threatened to bomb Iran unless it signs a deal renouncing nuclear weapons.

Still, in the televised remarks yesterday, Khamenei downplayed the likelihood of such an outcome, characterising it as “highly unlikely.”

His remarks follow a period of heightened tensions between Tehran and Washington. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said last week that there would be no direct negotiations with the US as long as the Trump administration maintains its “military threats.” In an interview with NBC News over the weekend, Trump said “if they don’t make a deal, there will be bombing.”

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Bloomberg previously reported that Trump had set a two-month deadline for Iran to negotiate a new deal or risk military consequences. In 2018, Trump pulled the US out of the original accord, which had imposed restrictions on Iran’s nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief. Since then, Iran has been building its inventory of uranium enriched just below weapons grade.

Since the start of his second term, Trump has revived his so-called “maximum pressure” strategy, vowing to stop Iran from developing a nuclear bomb. Tehran says its nuclear programme is only for peaceful purposes.