Iran’s supreme leader slams US nuclear proposal, says it will continue to enrich uranium

Iran’s supreme leader has denounced a proposal by the United States aimed at curbing Tehran’s nuclear efforts and demanded that his country retains national independence amid reports of Washington offering to become involved in Tehran’s nuclear program.

Iran’s supreme leader has denounced a proposal by the United States aimed at curbing Tehran’s nuclear efforts and demanded that his country retains independence amid reports of Washington offering to become involved in Tehran’s nuclear program. Despite several rounds of talks between the two sides to thrash out a new nuclear deal major sticking points remain, with Iran insisting on its right to nuclear enrichment. “The first word of the US is that Iran should not have a nuclear industry and should rely on the United States,” Ayatollah Ali Khamenei told a crowd gathered in Tehran to commemorate the death of Imam Khomeini, the founder of Iran’s Islamic Republic. “Our response to the US’ nonsense is clear: they cannot do a damn thing in this matter,” he said. The US sent a nuclear deal proposal to Iran on Saturday. CNN has learned this suggests the US could invest in Iran’s civilian nuclear power program and join a consortium that would oversee the enrichment of low-level uranium inside Iran for an unspecified amount of time. That potential consortium would be expected to include Middle Eastern nations and the UN’s nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency. Khamenei said Wednesday that Iran is refusing to allow the United States to give a “green or red light” with its nuclear program and stressed on “national independence.”