TEHRAN: Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei declared on Monday that any cooperation between Iran and the United States is impossible as long as Washington continues to support Israel, maintain military bases, and interfere in Middle Eastern affairs.
Khamenei’s remarks came amid renewed tensions as the Trump administration intensifies pressure on Tehran following a series of diplomatic deadlocks. Addressing senior officials, Khamenei said the U.S. continues to act against regional peace by backing Israel and pursuing aggressive policies in the Middle East.
“The Americans sometimes say they would like to cooperate with Iran. Cooperation with Iran is not possible as long as the US continues to support the accursed Zionist regime, maintains military bases, and interferes in the region,” Khamenei said, according to Iranian state media.
His statement was seen as a direct response to recent comments by U.S. President Donald Trump, who had suggested that Washington was open to a new agreement with Tehran. “The hand of friendship and cooperation with Iran is open,” Trump said in October, indicating potential diplomatic engagement once Tehran is “ready to deal.”
However, prospects for renewed dialogue remain bleak. The two sides held five rounds of nuclear talks earlier this year before relations collapsed following a 12-day war between Iran and Israel in June, during which the United States joined the conflict by striking several Iranian nuclear facilities.
Diplomatic sources said that discussions were derailed over the issue of uranium enrichment on Iranian soil — a key sticking point in the negotiations. Western powers have demanded that Iran reduce enrichment to zero to eliminate any risk of nuclear weaponisation, a proposal that Tehran has firmly rejected as an infringement of its sovereign rights.
Khamenei’s remarks reaffirm Iran’s longstanding stance that Washington’s regional policies and support for Israel are the main barriers to peace and dialogue. The comments also signal a harder line from Tehran as both countries navigate escalating hostilities and a deepening mistrust.
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