Iran supreme leader optimistic though nuclear talks stalled

By NASSER KARIMI and JON GAMBRELL
Associated Press

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran’s supreme leader is insisting negotiations over Tehran’s tattered nuclear deal “are going ahead properly.” That’s even after repeated comments by American officials that an agreement to restore the accord may not happen. The comments Tuesday by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, during a meeting with hard-line President Ebrahim Raisi’s administration marking the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, offered his endorsement of their “faithful and diligent” efforts. But restoring the deal remains in question, apparently over Iran’s demand that its paramilitary Revolutionary Guard be delisted by America as a terrorist group.