Iran says will not benefit from talks with U.S.

Iran's supreme leader said on Tuesday the country would not benefit from talks with the United States, playing down the significance of a prominent element in proposals to defuse a nuclear standoff. Washington, which broke ties with Tehran in 1980, said it would join the European Union's direct talks with Iran if Iran first agreed to suspend uranium enrichment. The offer came in a package of incentives backed by six world powers. The U.S. offer of talks was viewed as a major policy shift in Washington and by some analysts, particularly in the West, as a possible deal clincher. But Iran has shown no sign it is ready to stop enrichment and says it is suspicious of U.S. motives.
"Negotiating with America does not have any benefit for us and we do not need such negotiations," Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was quoted as saying by state television.