Ayatollah Ali Khamenei condemned the “intimidation of governments” in an apparent response to a letter the White House sent to Iran earlier this week.
Iran's supreme leader condemned the “bullying of governments” and expressed outrage on Saturday at the idea of talks with the United States over the country's nuclear program, apparently in response to a letter sent by President Trump earlier this week.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the leader, indirectly referred to Mr. Trump’s proposal that Iran negotiate on its fast-growing nuclear program or face possible military action while speaking at a meeting with government and military officials on the occasion of Ramadan. Although he did not directly mention the letter, Mr. Trump or even the United States by name, it was clear he was talking about Washington’s recent gesture.
“Some bully governments insist on negotiations not to solve problems but to impose,” Mr. Khamenei said, according to state media. He added that “negotiations are a way for them to make new demands, these are not just nuclear issues, to talk about the nuclear issue, they are making new demands that will definitely not be accepted by Iran.”
Speaking in the Oval Office on Friday, Mr. Trump suggested that Iran’s nuclear capabilities — which now include enough bomb-grade fuel to make about six weapons — were approaching a tipping point. He said he was offering the country a chance to negotiate or risk losing its program in a military strike.
The White House provided no details about the contents of Mr. Trump's letter, which the president said he sent on Wednesday.
Iranian officials are currently divided over whether the country should negotiate the program. While the ayatollah has condemned Mr. Trump’s proposal, other moderate and reformist leaders have spoken out in favor of starting talks, including President Masoud Pezeshkian, who took office last year. Ultimately, however, the final say rests with Mr. Khamenei, who has long said Iran cannot trust the United States.
The 2015 nuclear deal negotiated by President Barack Obama has worked, officials say. Iran has removed nearly all of its nuclear fuel from the country, and international inspectors have said the Iranians are complying with strict limits on new nuclear fuel production.
But Mr Trump, who has repeatedly criticised the deal, withdrew from the Iran nuclear agreement during his first term and reimposed tough economic sanctions on the country, hoping Tehran would respond by asking for a new deal more favourable to the United States.
Iran has not returned to the negotiating table and the program has now reached a critical point, experts say.
Mr Trump also potentially undermined his bid by upending two US programs that had worked for decades to expose Iran’s atomic bomb programs. One program has since been restored, but experts fear the disruptions will hurt the global fight to curb the spread of nuclear weapons.
Farnaz Fassihi contributed reporting.
Eve Sampson is a reporter covering international news and a participant in the 2024-25 Times Fellowship programme for early-career journalists. More about Eve Sampson
For more information, see: Ali Khamenei, Donald Trump
