What's next for US-Iran nuclear talks as Khamenei holds firm on enrichment?
As American bombers withdraw from the region and threats of a military strike ease, the Iranian leader hardened his stance, vowing that Tehran will pursue its nuclear enrichment program "without anyone's permission."
TEHRAN — Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, vehemently rejected the US demand that Tehran abandon its uranium enrichment program as a key condition for a potential US-Iran nuclear deal.
Khamenei described the push by US officials as "nonsensical" while addressing a Tehran ceremony on Tuesday in commemoration of former President Ebrahim Raisi, who died in a helicopter crash last year.
Using a strongly dismissive Persian expression, the supreme leader stated that the American side's condition "is way out of line."
Since mid-March, Iran and the United States have held four rounds of Omani-mediated talks in Muscat and Rome. While both sides have signaled cautious optimism, the rhetoric has increasingly escalated since the last round.
