Advertisement

Iran and US latest: President Hassan Rouhani says White House is 'afflicted by mental retardation' amid threat of diplomatic breakdown

Iran has warned that new US sanctions on supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei mean the “permanent closure” of diplomacy between Tehran and Washington.

In a fiery national TV address Iranian president Hassan Rouhani called the measures “outrageous and idiotic” and said the White House was “afflicted by mental retardation”.

President Donald Trump yesterday enacted sanctions targeting Khamenei and other top officials after attacks on a US spy drone and several oil tankers — and following the unravelling of an international deal aimed at curbing Iran’s nuclear ambitions.

White House officials also said they were planning sanctions against Iranian foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.

US President Donald Trump imposed new sanctions amid heightened tensions with Iran (REUTERS)
US President Donald Trump imposed new sanctions amid heightened tensions with Iran (REUTERS)

Washington says the measures were taken to discourage Tehran from developing nuclear weapons and supporting militant groups.

In response, foreign ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi told state media the “fruitless sanction on Iran’s leadership and the chief of Iranian diplomacy mean the permanent closure of the road of diplomacy”.

That was followed by Mr Rouhani’s televised speech.

Last night, Iran’s UN ambassador, Majid Takht Ravanchi, said any talks with the US were impossible in the face of sanctions and intimidation.

However, US national security adviser John Bolton, speaking in Jerusalem, said Mr Trump was open to real negotiations and “all that Iran needs to do is walk through that open door”.