Iranian Supreme Leader Khamenei rejects most recent US nuclear proposal

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei indicated in a speech on Wednesday that Iran has rejected the nuclear proposal offered by the United States earlier this week, following five rounds of talks.

“The U.S. nuclear proposal contradicts our nation’s belief in self-reliance and the principle of ‘We Can,’” Khamenei said.

Khamenei – who has publicly opposed the development of nuclear weapons despite Iranian leaders saying this may become necessary – said Iran must be permitted to continue uranium enrichment, which it uses for civilian energy.

“The rude and arrogant leaders of America repeatedly demand that we should not have a nuclear program,” he said. “Who are you to decide whether Iran should have enrichment?”

“Uranium enrichment is the backbone of our nuclear program. They want to dismantle our nuclear program and weaken our national power. But the U.S. will not be able to weaken our nuclear program.”

Though he publicly condemned the recent nuclear proposal offered by the U.S. administration, Khamenei did not say the talks must cease.

While the U.S. has insisted that Iran’s enrichment of uranium must be severely curtailed to prevent the possibility of Iran developing nuclear weapons, its proposal allows for Iran to maintain a nuclear energy program to be used for civilian purposes.

The proposal calls for a uranium enrichment consortium to ensure that Iran does not enrich uranium over the agreed-upon levels.

An Iranian official told the Axios news outlet that such a consortium would only be possible if it were located within Iran itself.

“If the consortium operates within the territory of Iran, it may warrant consideration,” the official said. “However, should it be based outside the borders of the country, it is certainly doomed to fail.”

According to Axios’ report on the content of the nuclear proposal, “Iran won’t be allowed to develop domestic enrichment capabilities beyond those necessary for civilian purposes.”