Dubai (United Arab Emirates), 23 September (LaPresse/AP) – Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has ruled out any possibility of direct negotiations with the United States on the nuclear programme, effectively closing the door on a last-ditch attempt to avoid the reintroduction of UN sanctions against Tehran. The statements, broadcast on state television, further reduce the room for manoeuvre of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, who is in New York for the United Nations General Assembly. Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met with diplomats from France, Germany and the United Kingdom, while the restoration of sanctions remains set for Sunday. ‘Talks with the United States are a dead end,’ Khamenei said. ‘Washington has already determined the outcome in advance: the closure of nuclear activities and uranium enrichment. This is not a negotiation, it is a diktat, an imposition.’ Even before Khamenei's remarks, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul had described the chances of an agreement with Tehran as ‘extremely slim’.