His were not destroyed in June by the American raids, the supreme leader of the theocratic country assures him, in essence refuting him. At the same time, he rejected the proposal of the American president to renew the talks between them.
“Who are you to say that a country can or cannot have (the right) to have nuclear weapons?” the Ayatollah asked during a meeting with athletes in the Iranian capital, addressing Trump, who claims that Tehran’s nuclear program has been “completely destroyed.”
In fact, in support of the American president’s claims, the Chief of the General Staff of the American Air Force, David Olvin, had made public, about a month ago, . Tehran and Washington had held five rounds of indirect negotiations over the nuclear program before ending in a 12-day air war in June, when Israel and the US bombed Iranian nuclear facilities.
A few days later, Iranian President Massoud Pezheskian had rejected negotiations on the nuclear issue, which could create “new problems”, after the reimposition of UN sanctions against the Islamic Republic.
Besides, Tehran announced on October 18, the day the international agreement it concluded 10 years ago expired, that it is no longer bound by “restrictions” on its nuclear program, while reiterating “its commitment” to diplomacy.
“Agreement with threats and blackmail, it is dictated by violence”
“Trump says he is a deal negotiator, but if an agreement is accompanied by coercion and its outcome is predetermined, then it is not an agreement, but coercion and intimidation,” Khamenei was quoted as saying by state media.
Last week, Trump told the Israeli parliament that it would be great if Washington could negotiate a “peace deal” with Tehran after a ceasefire in Gaza between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas began.
“The president of the United States proudly states that they bombed and destroyed Iran’s nuclear industry. Very well, keep dreaming!” Khamenei added. “What does America have to do with whether Iran has nuclear facilities or not? These interventions are inappropriate, wrong and coercive.”
Western powers accuse Iran of secretly trying to develop a nuclear bomb through uranium enrichment and demand that this activity cease. Tehran denies that it is seeking to build weapons, arguing that the program has purely peaceful, energy purposes.
