Khamenei says U.S. ‘will not succeed’ in destroying Iran

In this photo released by an official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks in a meeting, in Tehran, Iran, Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP)

Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Tuesday that U.S. President Donald Trump would not succeed in destroying the Islamic republic, as talks between the two countries took place in Geneva.

“In one of his recent speeches, the U.S. president said that for 47 years America has not succeeded in destroying the Islamic republic... I tell you: you will not succeed either,” Khamenei said in a speech.

The remarks came as Tehran and Washington engaged in a second round of talks on Tuesday.

The first round was held earlier in February, after previous talks collapsed during last year’s Iran-Israel war.

The latest discussions come after Washington deployed an aircraft carrier group to the Gulf following Iran’s deadly crackdown last month on anti-government protests, which were triggered by economic hardship.

During his speech, Khamenei warned that the U.S. warship deployed in the Gulf could be sunk.

“We constantly hear that they have sent a warship towards Iran. A warship is certainly a dangerous weapon, but even more dangerous is the weapon capable of sinking it,” he said.

Khamenei expressed skepticism over the outcome of the negotiations with the U.S.

“If there are to be negotiations -- because there is no real room for negotiation -- determining the outcome of the negotiations in advance is a mistake and madness,” he said, referring to U.S. calls for Iran to abandon its nuclear program.

During Iran’s 12-day war with Israel in June, the United States joined briefly with strikes on key Iranian nuclear facilities.

Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium, which had reached 60 percent purity before the war, remains among the key sticking points between Tehran and Washington.

The U.S. has repeatedly called for zero enrichment, but has also sought to address Iran’s ballistic missile program and its support for militant groups in the region -- issues which Israel has pushed to include in the talks.

On Tuesday, the Fars news agency quoted Khamenei as saying that the issue of Iran’s missile program “does not concern it (the U.S.) at all.”

Iran has insisted the talks be focused only on the nuclear issue and says its right to enrich uranium is non-negotiable.

“The statements of the American president, at times threatening and at times dictating what should and should not be done, reveal a desire to dominate the Iranian nation,” Khamenei said.