TEHRAN, Iran
Negotiations with the US are neither wise nor rational and will do nothing to solve Iran’s problems, the country's supreme leader said on Friday, dismissing growing speculation that Tehran and Washington might be moving toward resuming their long-stalled talks.
Addressing a gathering of army personnel in Tehran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei reinforced his stance that engaging with the US diplomatically is futile, stressing that negotiations have "no impact on resolving the country's problems."
He emphasized that merely sitting at the negotiating table with the US government does not translate into real solutions.
The reason, he noted, is "experience," pointing to the US withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), also known as the Iran nuclear deal, in May 2018.
Khamenei said Iran spent two years in negotiations, eventually reaching an agreement, arguing it was "generous and made significant concessions" during the marathon negotiations.
"However, the Americans did not honor the agreement. The very person who is in office now tore up the agreement," he said, referring to Donald Trump, who last month returned to the White House for his second term.
Since Trump’s reelection, speculation has been rife about the possibility of reviving the 2015 nuclear deal, with both sides giving veiled signals of their intent to return to the negotiating table for more than a year.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian’s reformist government, which won last year’s election with the promise of lifting sanctions through diplomatic engagement, has signaled its readiness to sit at the negotiating table with the Trump administration.
However, the political climate within Iran remains sharply divided. Many lawmakers remain staunchly opposed to any talks with Washington, citing a fundamental lack of trust between the two adversaries.
Khamenei, who has consistently cautioned against placing faith in the US, doubled down on his skepticism, saying that even before Trump’s presidency, the deal’s signatories, including Barack Obama's administration, "did not adhere to it."
"This is experience. We should learn from it. We gave concessions, we negotiated, we compromised, yet we did not achieve our intended results. Even with all its flaws, the agreement was eventually scrapped, violated, and torn apart by the other side," he said in what is his most forceful critique on the matter since Trump's reelection.
"Negotiating with such a government is not rational, wise, or honorable."
As media reports swirl about the potential resumption of talks, Khamenei reaffirmed that while Iran’s Foreign Ministry actively engages in diplomacy with nations across the world, the US remains an exception.
He also issued a stark warning that if Washington threatens Iran’s security, Tehran will respond in kind.
"They make statements, express opinions, and issue threats about us. If they threaten us, we will threaten them in return. If they act on their threats, we will act as well. If they violate our nation's security, we will undoubtedly violate theirs," he said.
The 2015 nuclear deal, mediated by world powers, sought to curb Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.
However, in 2018, the Trump administration unilaterally withdrew from the agreement, reigniting tensions between the two nations.
Under former President Joe Biden, diplomatic efforts were made to restore the deal, with multiple rounds of EU-mediated negotiations in Vienna. However, the talks failed to yield any breakthroughs, leaving the agreement effectively defunct.
Since October 2023, tensions between Tehran and Washington have escalated further, fueled by the wars in Gaza and Lebanon. Iranian authorities have openly accused the US of complicity in the conflicts.
