According to a report published on the Wall Street Journal,"Iran's leader launched an anti-Western broadside as global powers resumed negotiations on curbing Tehran's nuclear program, injecting fresh uncertainty into a diplomatic process viewed as crucial to Middle East stability'.
"Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's verbal attacks on Israel, the U.S. and its allies during a speech in Tehran Wednesday—he referred to the Jewish state as a "dirty rabid dog"—also tested the unity of the six international powers holding talks with Iran in Geneva this week.
The French government quickly challenged Mr. Khamenei, calling his speech "unacceptable," while the Obama administration offered a much milder response.
French officials said Wednesday that the tone and timing of Mr. Khamenei's comments vindicated the skepticism Paris has displayed toward Iran. American officials, conversely, said they didn't view the supreme leader's words as necessarily undermining their pursuit of a deal aimed at preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons.
"I would hope that neither in the U.S. nor Iran would leaders use rhetoric that may work well in a domestic constituency but add to the decades of mistrust on both sides," said a senior U.S. official.
It also rekindled questions in Western capitals about whether Mr. Rouhani will be able to deliver on an agreement to roll back Iran's nuclear program, when Mr. Khamenei is the last word on all of Iran's national security decisions.
"The content of Khamenei's speech was one of the most destructive he's ever given in the realm of foreign policy, even if he meant it for domestic use," said Roozbeh Mirebrahimi, an Iran expert in New York.
Mr. Khamenei accused Washington and Paris of being lackeys of the "Zionist regime" in Israel. He went on to recount what he called American war crimes in Iraq and Japan and claimed the U.S. was trying to destabilize his country".
