TEHRAN (AP) — Iran's top religious leader on Monday expressed support for negotiations on Tehran's nuclear program that would ensure a relaxation of economic sanctions imposed by the West, an unusual reference to stagnant dialogue as world powers approach a diplomatic turning point.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei stressed the importance of the Iranian economy being self-sufficient, during a long televised speech following Nouruz, the Persian New Year. However, he made a clarification,
“I am not saying that you should not seek the lifting of sanctions. Those who are trying and going that way, there is no problem,” he said.
Khamenei, whose pronouncements are considered crucial given that he has the final say on all matters of state in Iran, has remained virtually silent on the negotiations to restore the Tehran nuclear pact with world powers. Their vague but encouraging statements suggest that Iranian negotiators have maintained political space and flexibility.
Former US President Donald Trump withdrew his country from the nuclear deal in 2018. The current president Joe Biden promised to reinstate. The meticulous negotiations in Vienna have taken place over the past year. Iran, with its economy suffocated, has called for a relaxation of sanctions but at the same time intends to resist the demands of the West.
Negotiations came close to completion this month before Moscow demanded that its trade agreement with Iran be exempt from Western sanctions following its invasion of Ukraine, which sent the process into chaos. The negotiators have not yet met again in the Austrian capital and it is not clear what obstacles await them.
Iran generally regards Russia as an ally and shares Russian President Vladimir Putin's anti-American and anti-Western positions.