Khamenei warns against negotiating with US

Iran’s Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said yesterday that there should not be negotiations with the United States, days after US President Donald Trump called for a new nuclear deal.

“You should not negotiate with such a government, it is unwise, it is not intelligent, it is not honourable to negotiate,” Khamenei said during a meeting with army commanders.

The United States had previously “ruined, violated, and tore up” a 2015 nuclear deal, he said, adding that “the same person who is in power now tore up the treaty”. On Wednesday, Trump suggested striking a “verified nuclear peace agreement” with Iran, adding in his social media post that Tehran “cannot have a Nuclear Weapon”.

Trump, who returned to the White House on January 20, reinstated on Tuesday his “maximum pressure” policy towards Iran over allegations the country is seeking to develop nuclear weapons.

Iran insists its nuclear programme is solely for peaceful purposes and denies any intention to develop atomic weapons. Following the policy’s reinstatement, Washington on Thursday announced financial sanctions on entities accused of shipping hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of Iranian crude oil to China.

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