Baku, Azerbaijan, Mar. 12
By Umid Niayesh - Trend:
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei expresses concern about the nuclear talks with the P5+1 group.
Khamenei said that the nuclear negotiating team, which is appointed by President Hassan Rouhani, consists good and honest people who are making efforts within the country's interests.
However he is concerned about the talks because the counter party is crafty and can "stab in the back," Khamenei said, the supreme leader's official website reported March 12.
Khamenei made the remarks in a meeting in Tehran with the members of Iran's Assembly of Experts, which is tasked with appointing and removing Iran's supreme leader and supervising his activities.
"Every time when we are close to the end of the negotiations, the other side, especially the US start talking in more aggressive and harsh tone," Khamanei said, adding this is one of their "techniques and tricks."
Iran and the P5+1 group (the US, UK, France, Russia, China, and Germany) are negotiating to reach a deal on Tehran's disputed nuclear program. The sides have planned to reach a political understanding by the end of March, and a comprehensive deal by July 1.
Referring to the letter sent by 47 US senators on nullification of all accords after termination of Barack Obama's presidency, Khamanei said that is a sign of moral decay in the US political system.
Governments are committed to their obligations under international rules, the supreme leader said, adding the countries' commitments cannot be lifted with government changes.
On March 9, 47 Republican senators warned that any nuclear agreement being negotiated between Iran and world powers could be overturned if their party wins the White House in 2016.
In an open letter addressed to Iranian leaders the US Republicans stated that, absent congressional approval, the proposed deal would be merely an agreement with President Obama - and could be reversed by his successor.
The US and its Western allies suspect Iran of developing a nuclear weapon - something that Iran denies.
Edited by CN
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