Ayatollah speech
© EPAAyatollah Ali Khamenei's televised speech
Iran has finally reacted to the US proposal for a fresh nuclear deal which was submitted Saturday via Omani mediators, and as expected it has dismissed Washington demands to take uranium enrichment down to zero.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has made clear in fresh statements Wednesday that abandoning uranium enrichment was "100%" against the Islamic Republic's interests. This comes on the heels of a Truth Social post issued by President Trump which said in all caps: WE WILL NOT ALLOW ANY ENRICHMENT OF URANIUM.

Khamenei as the Ayatollah, or top Shia religious cleric, has final say over all matters of state policy, but notably he didn't call for halting the talks altogether, after it's gone through five rounds, including at Rome.

He said the US proposal "contradicts our nation's belief in self-reliance and the principle of 'We Can'". This is consistent with Iranian officials' prior position defending enrichment as a matter of national sovereignty that cannot fully be abandoned.

The question that remains is whether the US would allow for limited, or low-levels of enrichment, instead of the 'down to zero' position which is being hotly debated about. "Uranium enrichment is the key to our nuclear program and the enemies have focused on the enrichment," Khamenei said during a televised speech.

He addressed the nation on the anniversary of the death of the Islamic Republic's founder, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. He made it very clear where Tehran stands on the proposal currently offered by the Trump White House:
"The proposal that the Americans have presented is 100% against our interests ... The rude and arrogant leaders of America repeatedly demand that we should not have a nuclear programme. Who are you to decide whether Iran should have enrichment?"
There has been somewhat contradictory messaging coming out of Washington, with the Wall Street Journal having reported Sunday that the White House issued a directive last week telling federal agencies to halt the imposition of any new sanctions on Iran. Does this mark a step back from 'maximum pressure' in order to give talks a better chance?
"The new policy went out to top officials at the National Security Council and Treasury Department, and then to the State Department.

"Relevant officials working on the Middle East were looped in, but the directive had to spread much further. Iran sanctions intersect with U.S. policy toward China, where buyers take in more than 90% of Iran's oil exports, as well as Japan, Europe, India and Southeast Asia."
Over the weekend White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt warned in a statement. "Special Envoy Witkoff has sent a detailed and acceptable proposal to the Iranian regime, and it's in their best interest to accept it."

However, Iran responded by demanding transparent and firm guarantees regarding the "real end of the sanctions" which would also feature details on "how and through what mechanism" they would be dismantled.