&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "'Sheer dead end': Khamenei REJECTS talks with US over nuclear program, says will not 'surrender to pressure'")
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has ruled out direct talks with the United States on Tehran’s nuclear programme, calling negotiations with Washington “a sheer dead end”. His comments come as world leaders gather for the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).
In a recorded message, Khamenei said Iran would not “surrender to pressure” on uranium enrichment. He repeated Tehran’s long-standing position that it does not seek nuclear weapons.
Also read: White House claims UN staffers tried to humiliate Trump with 'escalatorgate' at UNGA; UN replies
What did Khamenei say about enrichment?
Khamenei accused Washington of dictating terms rather than offering genuine dialogue. “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,” he said.
He also pointed out that Iran’s enrichment level of 60% was still below weapons-grade, which requires 90%. “Countries seeking to build nuclear weapons increase enrichment to even 90%. Since we have no need for such weapons and have decided not to pursue nuclear arms, we have increased our level of enrichment to 60%,” he said.
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Khamenei’s statement came soon after Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met with Germany, France, and the United Kingdom, known as the E3, along with EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas.
The meeting centred on whether sanctions against Iran, suspended under the 2015 nuclear deal, should be reimposed. If no progress is made, the E3 are prepared to activate a UN Security Council mechanism that would restore penalties.
The talks take place as questions remain over around 880 pounds of uranium enriched to 60% that went missing after Israel bombed Iranian nuclear sites in June, triggering a 12-day conflict that briefly drew in the US.
What did Trump say at the UN?
At the UNGA, US President Donald Trump vowed that Iran would “never possess a nuclear weapon”, calling Tehran the “world’s number one sponsor of terror”. He also offered cooperation if Iran agreed to suspend its programme. “The president told the UN General Assembly earlier Tuesday that Iran continued to threaten its neighbours and U.S. interests in the region,” the WhiteHousesaid.
