Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Sunday that the country will not bow to U.S. pressure, urging Iranians to stand united against what he described as Washington’s attempts to weaken the Islamic republic.
Speaking at a mosque in Tehran, Khamenei accused the United States and Israel of plotting to destabilize Iran during the 12-day war in June, the fiercest direct clash the country has had with its longtime foes. His comments, posted on his official website, come just days before Iran is set to resume nuclear talks with Britain, France and Germany on Tuesday.
Khamenei claimed that after Israeli strikes on Iranian nuclear sites in June, “American agents” met in Europe to discuss who might take power in Iran if the Islamic republic fell. He argued that Washington’s ultimate goal was to make the country “obedient.”
“The Iranian nation, by standing firm alongside the armed forces, the government and the system, delivered a strong blow to its enemies,” he said, framing Iran’s response to the attacks as proof of its resilience.
The supreme leader also warned against internal divisions, accusing the U.S. and Israel of trying to stir unrest inside the country. “The way forward for the enemy is to create discord,” he said, but added that Iranians remained united when it came to defending the nation.
Tehran and Washington have had no diplomatic ties since the 1979 Islamic Revolution and the U.S. embassy hostage crisis. Relations have been defined by decades of sanctions, the most recent tied to Iran’s nuclear program. The U.S. and its allies accuse Iran of seeking nuclear weapons, a charge Tehran denies.
The June conflict derailed what would have been the sixth round of nuclear negotiations between Tehran and Washington. Now, with European powers threatening to reinstate sanctions if talks fail, Iran faces another high-stakes moment in its standoff with the West.
