US accusations meaningless: Iran supreme leader

The US has accused two Iranians of planning to assassinate the Saudi Arabian ambassador to Washington.

Tehran: Iran`s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Saturday the US accusations that two Iranians had planned to assassinate the Saudi Arabian ambassador to Washington were "meaningless”, state TV reported.

"A meaningless and nonsensical accusation has been raised against a few Iranians in America, which was made into an excuse to present the Islamic Republic as a supporter of terrorism," Khamenei told a crowd in the western province of Kermanshah.

"But it has not stuck and it will not stick," he said, adding, "They (United States) say that they want to isolate Iran. They are the ones who are isolated."

On Friday, Iran denied the US claim of having direct contact with it over the alleged plot to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to Washington.

"No direct talks have been held between the two countries" over the alleged plot, the press officer of Iran`s Representative Office to the UN, Alireza Miryousofi, told the semi-official Mehr news agency.

On Thursday, US State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said at a regular news briefing on Thursday. "We have had direct contact with Iran on this issue".

On Tuesday, the US Justice Department alleged that two men, Manssor Arbabsayar, a 56-year-old US citizen holding both the Iranian and US passports, and Gholam Shakuri, an Iranian citizen, were charged with sponsoring and promoting terrorist activities abroad, including a plot to kill Saudi Ambassador to Washington Adel Al-Jubeir.

Bureau Report

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