Iran rejects U.S. call to halt enrichment

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Tehran will not abandon its uranium enrichment, rejecting a key U.S. demand aimed at resolving a decades-long nuclear dispute that he said was against the Islamic Republic’s interests.

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei says uranium enrichment is the key to Iran’s nuclear issue, dismissing US proposals for Tehran to ultimately stop all enrichment in the country.

“The first word of the US is that Iran should not have a nuclear industry and should rely on the United States,” the Leader said in a televised speech from the mausoleum of Imam Khomeini in southern Tehran.

“Our response to the US nonsense is clear: they cannot do a damn thing in this matter,” the Leader said as Iran marked the 36th anniversary of the passing of the founder of the Islamic Republic.

In a strong response, Ayatollah Khamenei defended Iran’s nuclear program, emphasizing that uranium enrichment is central to the nation’s nuclear capabilities and a critical element of its broader industrial and scientific endeavors. Citing historical grievances, Khamenei recalled the U.S. and European refusal to supply 20% enriched uranium to Iran during the 1980s, framing it as part of a long history of foreign interference. He questioned U.S. motives and asserted that Iran’s independent nuclear capabilities serve not only energy needs but underpin multiple scientific fields.

The U.S. proposal for a new nuclear deal was presented to Iran by Oman, which has mediated talks between Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi and President Donald Trump's Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff.

Tehran says it wants to master nuclear technology for peaceful purposes and has long denied accusations by Western powers that it is seeking to develop nuclear weapons.