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Iran’s Khamenei Rejects US Demand to Halt Uranium Enrichment Amid Stalled Nuclear Talks
Iran’s Supreme Leader Khamenei calls US demands to stop uranium enrichment “nonsense,” as nuclear negotiations falter. Tehran insists enrichment is non-negotiable despite ongoing talks.
ND
by News Desk
2025-05-20
Iran’s Khamenei Rejects US Demand to Halt Uranium Enrichment Amid Stalled Nuclear Talks

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has firmly rejected the United States’ demand that Tehran halt its uranium enrichment program, describing such demands as “nonsense.” Speaking in a Tuesday address reported by Mehr News Agency, Khamenei stated that no Iranian authority is waiting for permission from other countries to continue its nuclear activities. He also expressed uncertainty about whether ongoing talks with the US would yield any positive results.

Since mid-April, Washington and Tehran have engaged in four rounds of talks mediated by Oman, aiming to revive and renegotiate Iran’s nuclear program limits in exchange for sanctions relief. However, escalating disagreements have cast doubt on the next round of negotiations, reportedly scheduled for the coming weekend in Rome.

US President Donald Trump, who withdrew from the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) during his previous term, has since returned with a renewed “maximum pressure” policy, insisting that talks progress swiftly or risk failure. Tehran confirmed receipt of a US proposal and is reviewing it, yet Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht-Ravanchi warned that negotiations would collapse if Washington insists on an end to Iran’s domestic uranium enrichment.

Currently, Iran enriches uranium up to 60 percent purity, exceeding the 2015 agreement’s 3.67-percent cap but remaining below the approximately 90 percent required for a nuclear weapon. Tehran maintains its nuclear program is solely for peaceful purposes and considers enrichment “non-negotiable.” US negotiator Steve Witkoff has called continued enrichment a “red line,” reiterating that even a 1 percent enrichment capability is unacceptable.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi expressed optimism that a deal preventing nuclear weapons acquisition is “within reach,” while reaffirming that Iran will persist with uranium enrichment regardless of the negotiation outcome.

The stalemate underscores the fragile state of US-Iran relations and highlights the complex challenges facing diplomacy over Iran’s nuclear ambitions.

 
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USIranRelations

NuclearTalks

Khamenei

IranNuclear
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