Iran’s supreme leader looks forward to post-Trump future but says talks ‘got us nowhere’
- In 2015, Iran agreed a deal with world powers, allowing sanctions to be lifted in return for curbs on Iran’s nuclear programme
- President Donald Trump abandoned the deal in 2018, and Tehran responded by scaling down its compliance
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei dismissed the prospect of new negotiations with the West on Tuesday, even as the Tehran government spoke optimistically about the return of foreign companies in “the absence of Trump” and his sanctions.
Biden’s staff says the former vice-president aims to restore the deal provided that Iran again abides by it. But diplomats and analysts have also said this was unlikely to happen overnight, as the adversaries would both want additional commitments.
Washington wants Iran to curb missile programmes which are not covered by the nuclear deal, and reduce its interventions in the Middle East. Iran has long said it will not negotiate over missiles, and no talks can begin unless Washington returns to the nuclear agreement and lifts sanctions unconditionally.
In remarks reported by state television on Tuesday, Khamenei expressed scepticism about the entire project of negotiating with the West.
“We once tried the path of having the sanctions lifted and negotiated several years, but this got us nowhere,” he said.