Khamenei accuses US of failing to respect nuclear deal

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei accused Washington of failing to respect the terms of a nuclear deal that lifts sanctions on Tehran, in a speech today marking Persian New Year.
"The Americans have not respected their commitments," he said in the speech for Nowruz in the northeastern city of Mashhad.
The United States has lifted sanctions "on paper" under Tehran's nuclear deal with world powers that came into effect in January, "but they are using roundabout paths to prevent the Islamic republic from achieving its targets", Khamenei said.
"They have said they lifted the sanctions... But, in fact, they are working to prevent the lifting of sanctions from taking effect," he said.

The Nowruz holiday comes just two months after implementation of the deal began, triggering the lifting of a raft of international sanctions and raising the prospect of renewed foreign investment.
But Khamenei said the Western allies of Washington remained "afraid" of dealings with Iran.

"Today, in all the Western countries which are under their influence, banking transactions come up against problems," he said.
"When we investigated, we realised that they are afraid of the Americans."
In a pre-recorded television address broadcast earlier today, he said: "The economy must be our priority."
The end of the 13-year standoff over Iran's nuclear programme has raised expectations of recovery after years of economic difficulty, including high inflation which dramatically reduced Iranians' purchasing power.

The economy exited a deep recession little more than a year ago.
But although international oil sales have resumed and exports risen since January, the price of crude means receipts have been low and growth remains weak.