Khamenei opens door to nuclear talks with US, but asserts ‘enemy’ can’t be trusted

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Iran’s supreme leader opens the door to renewed negotiations with the United States over his country’s rapidly advancing nuclear program, telling its civilian government there was “no barrier” to engaging with its “enemy.”

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s remarks sets clear red lines for any talks taking place under the government of reformist President Masoud Pezeshkian and renewed his warnings that America isn’t to be trusted.

But his comments mirror those around the time of Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, which saw Tehran’s nuclear program greatly curtailed in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions. Yet it remains unclear just how much room Pezeshkian will have to maneuver, particularly as tensions remain high in the wider Mideast over the Israel-Hamas war.

“We do not have to pin our hope to the enemy. For our plans, we should not wait for approval by the enemies,” Khamenei says in a video broadcast by state television. “It is not contradictory to engage the same enemy in some places, there’s no barrier.”

Khamenei, who has the final say on all state matters, also warns Pezeshkian’s Cabinet, “Do not trust the enemy.”