Overview
- Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Iran will not cooperate with the United States as long as Washington supports Israel, maintains military bases, and interferes in the region.
- His remarks, published by Iranian state media, directly rebuke U.S. outreach and reject the premise of renewed engagement.
- Trump said in October that the United States is ready to make a deal with Iran and described a "hand of friendship and cooperation" toward Tehran.
- Iran and Western powers held five rounds of nuclear talks before a 12-day June conflict in which Washington struck key Iranian nuclear sites.
- Talks remain stalled over uranium enrichment, with Western governments seeking zero enrichment that Tehran rejects, as the U.S. presses a maximum-pressure campaign launched after the 2018 deal withdrawal.