US Iran tension LIVE updates: Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader, said Tuesday that US President Donald Trump would not succeed in undermining or destroying the Islamic Republic, as negotiations between Iran and the United States were underway in Geneva, as reported by AFP.
Here’s what Khamenei said
“In one of his recent speeches, the US president said that for 47 years America has not succeeded in destroying the Islamic republic… I tell you: you will not succeed either,” Khamenei said in a speech, AFP reported.
“We constantly hear that they have sent a warship towards Iran. A warship is certainly a dangerous weapon, but even more dangerous is the weapon capable of sinking it,” he said.
Khamenei expressed skepticism over the outcome of the negotiations with the US. “If there are to be negotiations — because there is no real room for negotiation — determining the outcome of the negotiations in advance is a mistake and madness,” he said, referring to US calls for Iran to abandon its nuclear programme, AFP reported.
Iran said Tuesday that it would temporarily shut down the Strait of Hormuz to conduct live-fire military exercises, signaling a rare show of strength as its representatives engaged in another round of indirect negotiations with the United States in Geneva over its contentious nuclear program, as reported by the Associated Press.
Araghchi says, ‘I am in Geneva with real ideas’
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who is leading the talks for Iran, met with the head of the UN nuclear watchdog agency Monday in Geneva.
“I am in Geneva with real ideas to achieve a fair and equitable deal,” Araghchi wrote on X. “What is not on the table: submission before threats.”
This is the first time Tehran has declared a closure of the vital waterway—through which roughly 20% of global oil shipments transit—since Washington began issuing threats and deploying additional military forces to the region. The move represents a further escalation in a weeks-long confrontation that risks sparking a broader conflict in the Middle East, the report stated.
As negotiations got underway, Iran’s state media reported that live missiles had been launched toward the Strait of Hormuz and that the waterway would be shut for several hours due to “safety and maritime concerns.”
The semiofficial Tasnim News Agency, which is closely aligned with the country’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, said missiles fired from within Iran and along its coastline successfully hit their intended targets in the Strait.
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