Iran's Khamenei accuses US of being 'malicious' in nuclear talks

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Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei accused the U.S. of being "obstinate" in nuclear talks, claiming that the Biden administration is not lifting sanctions on the Islamic country despite saying they would.

The administration announced in June that they were lifting sanctions that had been placed against three former Iranian officials and Iranian energy companies. Now Khamenei claims the U.S. is taking a harder position without granting relief.

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"In the recent nuclear talks, the Americans staunchly insisted on their obstinate stance," Khamenei tweeted Wednesday morning. "When making promises & on paper they say they’ll remove sanctions, but in practice they didn’t & won’t. Then they say new articles should be added to the deal that already exists."

Khamenei also warned other governments that they "should utterly avoid tying their plans to negotiations with the West, for they’ll certainly fail," and that the U.S. cannot be trusted. He seemed to reference the Trump administration's decision to withdraw from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, commonly known as the Iran nuclear deal, and said he does not trust the Biden administration to be any different.

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"The West & the US are totally unjust & malicious in their negotiations," he said. "They have no hesitation in breaching their commitments at all. In the previous agreement, they breached their commitments & they give no guarantee they will abide by their commitments in the future either."

Fox News reached out to the White House for comment but they did not immediately respond.

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Republicans like Rep. John Katko, ranking member of the House Homeland Security Committee, warned the administration against granting any sanctions relief. On June 14, he wrote a letter to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen in which he asked for reinstating sanctions on the energy companies and former officials, and for the administration to not lift other sanctions.

"It is my firm belief that continuing to lift sanctions would be a historic mistake that would leave the United States less secure," Katko wrote. "Continuing to operate from a position of weakness and appeasement will only further embolden the Iranian regime’s efforts to endanger the lives of Americans, undermine U.S. interests, and threaten the safety and security of our ally, Israel."