Iran’s Ayatollah ‘Not Optimistic’ as Nuclear Talks Resume
Six world powers and Iran met in Vienna to begin hashing out a long-term deal on Tehran’s disputed nuclear program Tuesay — but the Islamic Republic’s supreme leader predicted negotiations “will lead nowhere.”
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s pessimistic comments underscore the difficulty diplomats face as they try to seal a final agreement before an interim pact expires in July.
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Geneive Abdo, an Iran expert at the non-partisan Stimson Center, thinks it’s unlikely a major deal will come out of the talks being headlined by Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif and the European Union’s foreign policy chief, Catherine Ashton.
“It seems that Rouhani is losing the window of opportunity he was given when he was elected,” she said, citing Khamenei’s remarks and other anti-U.S. sentiment coming out of Iran in recent weeks.
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