Iran’s supreme leader says US-Iran talks unlikely to succeed

By Nadeen Ebrahim, CNN

(CNN) — Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said he does not expect negotiations with the United States over Tehran’s nuclear program to “reach a conclusion” as Washington toughens its conditions for a deal.

“During (former President Ebrahim) Raisi’s time there were also indirect negotiations that didn’t result in anything, and now we also doubt we will reach a conclusion, and we don’t know what will happen,” he was cited as saying on his website.

Khamenei called the US demand that Iran not enrich uranium a “big mistake,” saying that Tehran won’t wait for American permission. Addressing American negotiators, he added: “Try not to talk nonsense.”

American officials have sent mixed signals about whether they will allow Iran to enrich uranium domestically under a nuclear agreement. Uranium is a nuclear fuel that can be used to produce a bomb if enriched to high levels.

Iran insists it has a right to enrich under the United Nations’ Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and says it will not relinquish that right under any circumstances.

US President Donald Trump has threatened to attack Iran if it doesn’t agree to a nuclear deal, but he did not explicitly rule out its right to enrich uranium when reiterating that threat during his Middle East trip last week.

But US special envoy Steve Witkoff, who is leading the American delegation to the talks and had previously suggested Iran could be permitted to enrich uranium, told ABC over the weekend that Washington “cannot allow even 1% of an enrichment capability” under an agreement. “We’ve delivered a proposal to the Iranians that we think addresses some of this without disrespecting them,” he said.

Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht Ravanchi was cited as saying by Iran’s Nour News on Monday that nuclear talks with the US “will not actually get anywhere” if Washington insists that Tehran abandon enrichment.

Iran and the US held their fourth round of talks in Oman earlier this month, aimed at curbing Tehran’s nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief. The Iranian foreign ministry described those talks as “difficult.”

Witkoff said the next round of talks may take place in Europe this week. “We hope that it will lead to some real positivity,” he added.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Tuesday that Iran has been offered a date for the next round of talks, but that it has yet to accept it.

Asked how negotiations were going so far, he jokingly said the two sides are still tussling.

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CNN’s Leila Gharagozlou contributed reporting.