Reuters and AFP - Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has stated his country's red lines for a nuclear deal with six world powers.
"Freezing Iran's research and development for a long time like 10 or 12 years is not acceptable," Khamenei said in a speech broadcast live on June 23.
Khamenei, who has the final say for Iran on any deal, added that all financial and economic sanctions "should be lifted immediately" if an agreement is signed.
Britain, France, Germany, China, Russia, and the United States want Tehran to commit to a verifiable halt of at least 10 years on sensitive nuclear development work as part of a deal they aim to reach by a June 30 deadline. In exchange, they are offering relief from economic sanctions.
Khamenei reiterated that Iran would not give international inspectors access to its military sites and accused the United States of wanting to destroy Iran's nuclear industry.
The six powers want limits on Tehran's programs that could have a military use.
Tehran denies it is pursuing nuclear weapons.
