Iran\u2019s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei went on the offensive Saturday, accusing President Donald Trump of lying about wanting peace in the Middle East. \u201cTrump said he wants to use power for peace. He\u2019s lying,\u201d Khamenei wrote on social media, just hours after Trump left the Gulf region following a whirlwind tour through Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
During a televised speech and a string of posts online, Khamenei called Trump\u2019s remarks an \u201cembarrassment to the speaker and the American people.\u201d He accused the U.S. of hypocrisy, claiming it was using power not to bring peace, but to fund Israel\u2019s military operations in Gaza. \u201cThey used power to provide the Zionist regime with ten-ton bombs to be dropped on Gaza\u2019s children, hospitals, and people\u2019s homes,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
His most inflammatory remarks came when he described Israel as \u201ca dangerous, deadly, cancerous tumor\u201d that \u201cmust and will be eliminated.\u201d These statements echoed his previous threats against both Israel and the United States. Khamenei\u2019s speech was followed by chants of \u201cDeath to America\u201d from the audience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
President Trump, for his part, did not remain silent. Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, he made it clear that the U.S. would not back down. \u201cIran\u2019s leaders have focused on stealing their people\u2019s wealth to fund terror and bloodshed abroad,\u201d Trump said. He warned that if Iran does not \u201cmove quickly\u201d to accept the latest U.S. proposal on its nuclear program, \u201csomething bad\u2019s gonna happen.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trump also addressed Iran\u2019s behavior in the broader region. \u201cThey\u2019ve caused unthinkable suffering in Syria, Lebanon, Gaza, Iraq, Yemen and beyond,\u201d he said. Speaking in Riyadh, he called Iran \u201cthe biggest and most destructive force in the region.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Despite the war of words, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian offered a more tempered message. \u201cWe are negotiating, and we will negotiate. We are not after war, but we do not fear any threat,\u201d he said. He stressed that Iran would not give up its \u201cdefinite rights\u201d to continue scientific and nuclear progress, stating that \u201cwe will not withdraw.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Iran\u2019s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi doubled down on this message. \u201cThere is no scenario in which Iran abandons its hard-earned right to uranium enrichment,\u201d he said in a post on X. He claimed Iran had not received a formal U.S. proposal and accused Washington of \u201cchanging the framework\u201d every time the talks progressed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At the heart of the deadlock is Iran\u2019s nuclear enrichment program. Trump\u2019s administration insists Iran must completely halt enrichment. Iran argues it has the legal right to enrich uranium under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, provided it remains for peaceful purposes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Steve Witkoff, Trump\u2019s special envoy to the Middle East, was blunt: \u201cWe cannot allow even one percent of an enrichment capability. Everything begins with a deal that does not include enrichment.\u201d He said this was clearly conveyed to Iran through diplomatic channels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, Iran’s top nuclear official, Mohammad Eslami, said Iran is already under strict international monitoring. \u201cNo country is inspected like we are,\u201d he said, noting that the U.N. nuclear watchdog conducted over 450 inspections in 2024 alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
While critics paint Trump as aggressive, his defenders argue that he is trying to prevent war by projecting strength. His tough talk, they say, is a strategic move to pressure Iran into accepting a peaceful solution. As one U.S. official put it, \u201cPeace through strength is not just a slogan\u2014it\u2019s the only thing this regime understands.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trump\u2019s supporters see Khamenei\u2019s statements not as real policy but as propaganda aimed at rallying radicals within Iran. Alireza Nader, a D.C.-based expert on Iran, said, \u201cKhamenei is trying to look tough after setbacks in Gaza and at home. Trump has the upper hand.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As negotiations continue behind closed doors, both sides appear dug in. Trump is demanding full denuclearization, while Iran refuses to give up what it calls a \u201cpeaceful right.\u201d Talks in Oman recently ended with no deal, and no date has been set for the next round.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Still, some diplomats are hopeful. \u201cBoth sides are talking. That\u2019s better than silence,\u201d one European official said. But with threats flying and no trust between the two governments, any deal – if it comes – will be a hard-won battle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
NP Editor: <\/strong> Trump will not back down, but he will be tolerant with rhetoric in the negotiation stages. The key is in the ability to verify, and we are doubting that Iran will ever truly back down until a more moderate leadership takes over. Where is the Shah when you need him?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Khamenei Lashes Out After Trump\u2019s Middle East Tour Iran\u2019s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei went on the offensive Saturday, accusing President Donald Trump of lying about wanting peace in the Middle East. \u201cTrump said he wants to use power for peace. He\u2019s lying,\u201d Khamenei wrote on social media, just hours after Trump left the Gulf region following a whirlwind tour through Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. During a televised speech and a string of posts online, Khamenei […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":6102,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[38,21,22],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6100","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-middle-east","category-threat-to-america","category-trump"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/khameniasdrasdv.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6100","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6100"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6100\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6101,"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6100\/revisions\/6101"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/6102"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6100"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6100"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nakedpolitics.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6100"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}