Khamenei dismisses Trump’s “illusion” of destroying Iran’s nuclear programme

Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, on Monday dismissed US President Donald Trump’s claim that American airstrikes in June destroyed Iran’s nuclear facilities, calling it an “illusion.”

“The US president boasts: ‘We bombed and destroyed Iran’s nuclear industry.’ Well, live that illusion,” Khamenei said during a meeting with Iranian athletes, according to remarks published on his official website.

His comments come after Trump repeatedly asserted that US strikes in June had “completely destroyed” key elements of Iran’s nuclear infrastructure.

On 22 June, US warplanes, supporting Israel during a 12-day war, targeted several nuclear sites—including the Fordow underground enrichment facility near Qom, as well as facilities in Isfahan and Natanz. The full extent of the damage remains unclear.

In an address to the Israeli Knesset last week, Trump said “We dropped 14 bombs on the main nuclear facilities. They were completely destroyed, and that has been confirmed.” He reiterated the claim in an interview on Fox News on Sunday, saying, “When we destroyed their nuclear capabilities, they stopped acting recklessly in the Middle East.”

Khamenei, however, ridiculed the assertion, questioning both the legitimacy and the authority of the US to interfere with Iran’s nuclear program. “What business would America have if Iran had a nuclear industry?” he asked. “Who are you to decide which country may or may not have nuclear energy?”

Relations between Tehran and Washington have been severed since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, when Iranian students seized the US embassy and took American diplomats hostage. Decades of hostility have followed, punctuated by failed diplomatic efforts to curb Iran’s alleged nuclear program.

In April, Iran and the US began indirect talks, mediated by Oman, over reviving stalled negotiations on nuclear restrictions. However, the talks collapsed following Israel’s 13 June surprise attack on Iran, which triggered the 12-day conflict. During the war, Israel launched hundreds of airstrikes against Iranian nuclear and military targets, killing several scientists linked to the country’s nuclear efforts. Iran retaliated with missile and drone attacks against Israeli targets

Despite recent tensions, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said Monday that Tehran had not closed the door to renewed dialogue. “The door has not been closed yet,” Baghaei told reporters.

Israel and Western governments accuse Iran of seeking to develop nuclear weapons, a charge Tehran continues to deny, insisting its program is purely civilian.