Khamenei welcomes Obama's remarks against strike
Iran's supreme leader lauds US president's call for diplomacy instead of war on Iran's nuclear program, but blasts sanctions
Iran's state TV is reported Thursday that the country's supreme leader has welcomed comments by US President Barack Obama pushing diplomacy and not war as a solution to Tehran's nuclear ambitions.
The report quoted the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as lauding a recent statement by the US president, saying he saw a "window of opportunity" to use diplomacy to resolve the nuclear dispute with Iran.
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"This talk is good talk and shows a departure from illusion," Khamenei's website quoted the leader as telling clerics from the Assembly of Experts.
Khamenei immediately qualified his rare praise of the American leader, expressing regret that Obama has reaffirmed his commitment to bolstering sanctions against Iran over its atom program.
"This part of his statements shows that (the US) maintains illusions in this regard," Khamenei told the senior clerics.
He added the West's sanctions on the Islamic Republic would fail.
The US and its allies suspect Iran is trying to build a nuclear weapon, a charge Iran denies.
Obama Tuesday said diplomacy can still resolve the nuclear crisis and accused his Republican critics of "beating the drums of war."
AP and AFP contributed to the report
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