Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has ruled out direct negotiations with the United States on its nuclear programme, calling the talks with the US a “dead end” that is not in the national interest of Iran.
Khamenei made the remarks during a televised address on Tuesday, right after Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi met with officials from Germany, France, and the United Kingdom and the foreign policy chief of the European Union Kaja Kallas on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly to reach a deal to avert UN sanctions set to take effect on Iran from September 27 over its nuclear programme. Iran’s top diplomat could not strike a deal with the European diplomats on Tuesday.
Khamenei, in his address, made it clear that Iran would not give in to pressure from Western countries to abandon its uranium enrichment programme, while also clarifying that the country does not intend to possess a nuclear bomb with the enriched uranium.
“Today, we have reached an advanced level in uranium enrichment. While countries aiming to develop nuclear weapons enrich uranium up to 90%, we have limited ours at 60% because we have no need for such weapons and have intended to not pursue nuclear weapons,” Khamenei said, according to a post on an official X (formerly Twitter) account.
{{/usCountry}}“Today, we have reached an advanced level in uranium enrichment. While countries aiming to develop nuclear weapons enrich uranium up to 90%, we have limited ours at 60% because we have no need for such weapons and have intended to not pursue nuclear weapons,” Khamenei said, according to a post on an official X (formerly Twitter) account.
{{/usCountry}}He added that Iran is one of the 10 countries capable of uranium enrichment and that it is the only one which does not have a nuclear bomb. “We’re the ones who don’t have a nuclear bomb, and we won’t have one. We have no intention of using nuclear weapons, but we do have enrichment,” he said.
Iran’s supreme leader also said that uranium enrichment impacts various aspects of people's lives, such as “agriculture, environment, electrical energy, medicine, industries,” and others.
‘It’s not negotiation – it’s dictation’
During his address at the United Nations General Assembly, US President Donald Trump called Iran “world’s number-one sponsor of terror” and that the country cannot be allowed to possess a nuclear weapon.
Refusing to engage in direct talks with the United States over its nuclear programme, Iran’s supreme leader said engaging in negotiations with the US would not serve Iran’s national interests as the US has already determined the outcome of such talks.
“Under current circumstances, negotiating with the US govt. does nothing to serve our national interests, because the American side has already determined the negotiations' outcome in advance: the shutdown of nuclear enrichment in Iran. This isn't a negotiation – it’s dictation,” Khamenei said.
He added that negotiation with the US is "severely detrimental" and that accepting its demands would mean that Iran is “susceptible to threats”.
“No honorable nation would accept negotiations under threats, and no wise politician would ever endorse that,” he said.