Iranian supreme leader: Obstinacy obstacle to solving nuclear issue

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Wednesday that "obstinacy" of some states is an obstacle to solving Iran's nuclear issue, semi-official Fars news agency reported. If some countries put aside obstinacy, Iran's nuclear issue will be solved "easily," Khamenei was quoted as saying talking to a group of Iran's judiciary staff. In a number of cases, "Iran's nuclear issue was about to be solved, but the United States made new excuses," said the Iranian leader alluding to the past meetings between Iran and the world powers over the country's nuclear program. After the June-14 presidential election, in which moderate Hassan Rouhani was elected as the next president, hopes have been raised about solving Iran's year-long nuclear standoff. The West suspects the Islamic republic's nuclear program might have a military dimension, but Iranian officials insist that the nuclear activities of Iran are for civilian purposes.