Talks with US unlikely to ‘lead to any outcome’

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said yesterday that nuclear talks with the United States were unlikely to yield any results, amid a diplomatic standoff over the Islamic republic's enrichment activities.

"We don't think it will lead to any outcome. We don't know what will happen," said Khamenei during a speech, adding that denying Iran's right to enrich uranium was "a big mistake".

Iran and the United States have held four rounds of Omani-mediated nuclear talks since April 12, the highest-level contact between the two foes since Washington abandoned the 2015 nuclear accord.

They had confirmed plans to hold another round of discussions during their last meeting on May 11, which Iran described as "difficult but useful", while a US official said Washington was "encouraged".

Iran currently enriches uranium to 60 percent, far above 3.67-percent limit set in the 2015 deal but below the 90 percent needed for a nuclear warhead.