The Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the United Nations

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Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has the final say on policy matters in Iran, assured an audience of thousands of members of the hard-line Basij paramilitary organization that the negotiators would not compromise on Iran’s main nuclear policies.

“I do not interfere in the details of the talks,” Ayatollah Khamenei said in a speech in Tehran. “We will not step back one iota from our rights.”

Iran’s leaders have always emphasized a set of “red lines,” vowing not to stop enrichment, which has been demanded by five United Nations Security Council resolutions. The Iranians also refuse to temporarily halt enrichment.

The Geneva talks are a continuation of an attempt two weeks ago to clinch a deal with Iran that would put a brake on its nuclear program in return for an easing of economic sanctions. American officials say those terms are intended only as a first step to a comprehensive agreement that would remove the risk of Iran’s developing a nuclear weapon.

Those talks failed, in part because France, one of the six world powers conducting the talks, objected that the proposed deal did not d...

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