Iran’s internal struggle over nuclear negotiations with the United States intensified after Iran International, citing the conservative outlet Raja News, reported that Iran’s new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, sharply condemned the talks in Islamabad as being “contrary to religious law.” According to the report, he said the officials handling the nuclear file had exceeded their authority, discussed the issue outside the pre-set conditions, and ignored the limits imposed before the talks began.
Members of the Supreme National Security Council later wrote to the supreme leader, asking him to back the decision to include the nuclear issue in any future negotiations. They argued that serious fears of renewed strikes on vital Iranian infrastructure made it necessary to keep a diplomatic channel open. Khamenei, the report said, rejected that argument and replied that the talks would bring “no benefit in this world or the next.” He also said the negotiations would not stop attacks on Iran’s facilities, underscoring resistance to the approach favored by parts of the political and security establishment in Tehran.
The dispute spilled further into Iran’s state television. Hardline parliament member Mahmoud Nabavian read out excerpts from highly classified letters and claimed Khamenei had repeatedly opposed talks with the United States, demanded compensation from Washington, and insisted Iran alone retain control of the Strait of Hormuz. The broadcast was abruptly cut off, and state media later said a legal violation had occurred and that one senior official had resigned over the incident.
Meanwhile, Iran International said extremist commentators on state television argued that closing the Strait of Hormuz would not be enough to stop the negotiations. They also called for shutting Tehran’s Mehrabad Airport to prevent senior Iranian officials from flying abroad for talks with the Americans. The Iranian negotiating delegation is already in Switzerland for technical discussions with the United States, led by parliament speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and other senior figures also taking part. The Supreme National Security Council has instructed media not to portray closing Hormuz and holding talks as contradictory, but as one strategy combining military pressure and diplomacy.
