Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has stated that negotiations with the United States over Tehran’s nuclear programme would not serve the country’s interests, describing such talks as a “dead-end.” His position signals an uncompromising stance just days before renewed international sanctions could be imposed on Iran.
“Talks with the US represent ‘a sheer dead end’,” Khamenei said in a speech aired on Iranian state television. He added, “The US has announced the result of the talks in advance. The result is the closure of nuclear activities and enrichment. This is not a negotiation. It is a diktat, an imposition.”
Khamenei also addressed Iran’s uranium enrichment activities, declaring, “The American side has been adamant that Iran must not have (uranium) enrichment,” and continued, “We did not surrender, and we will not.” In a recorded message, he reiterated Tehran’s position that it does not need nuclear weapons and has no intention of producing them, stating, “We do not have a nuclear bomb and we will not have one, and we do not plan to use nuclear weapons.”
His remarks come as European nations, including France, Germany, and the United Kingdom, urge Tehran to resume direct talks with the US and allow International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors access to all nuclear sites. The German Foreign Office stated, “France, Germany, Britain and the EU urged Iran to take steps within days, ‘if not hours’, to address concerns over its nuclear programme. It should resume direct talks with the US and provide the International Atomic Energy Agency with access to all its nuclear sites, ‘in line with its obligations.’”
European governments have triggered the “snapback” mechanism to reimpose sanctions on Iran over its failure to meet the conditions of the 2015 nuclear deal. If no diplomatic deal is found this week, the sanctions will automatically “snapback” on Sunday, again freezing Iranian assets abroad, halting arms deals with Tehran and penalising any development of Iran’s ballistic missile programme, further squeezing the country’s reeling economy.
Despite mounting diplomatic pressure, Khamenei emphasised that his comments were directed at the United States, not Europe. European officials indicated that “diplomatic engagement” would continue even if sanctions are reimposed.
Khamenei reaffirmed Iran’s position that its nuclear programme is peaceful, noting, “Iran has long insisted its programme is peaceful, though Western nations and the IAEA assess that Tehran had an active nuclear weapons programme until 2003.” He also addressed recent US and Israeli actions, asserting, “Science will not be demolished by threats and bombing.”
The standoff comes as Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi continue high-level diplomatic engagements in New York. However, the prospect for a breakthrough appears slim, with Germany’s Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul calling the chance of an agreement by the weekend “extremely slim.”
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