As indirect discussions between the United States and Iran commenced in Oman on Friday, Vice President JD Vance’s earlier comments have highlighted a significant challenge for Washington. Vance pointed out the absence of the Iranian Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, from the negotiations, underscoring that the key decision-maker in Tehran isn’t directly involved in the talks.

During an interview, Vance expressed his concerns, saying, “It’s peculiar to engage in diplomacy with a nation when you can’t communicate with the person who holds the reins of power. This adds a layer of complexity… It’s strange that we can’t converse with the actual leadership of the country. This situation really complicates diplomatic efforts,” he remarked on Megyn Kelly’s podcast.

Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, was seen addressing a crowd in Tehran on November 3, 2025, during a speech commemorating the 1979 U.S. Embassy takeover, known as the ‘National Day of Fight against Global Arrogance.’ In his speech, Khamenei asserted that cooperation with Washington was unattainable as long as the U.S. continued its support for Israel and maintained military bases in the region. (Iranian Leader Press Office/Anadolu via Getty Images)

The Supreme Leader has no equals

At 86, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has been Iran’s supreme leader since 1989, holding the highest political and religious authority in the country. His position grants him ultimate control over military, security, and strategic decisions, meaning any diplomatic agreements must ultimately receive his approval.

Sina Azodi, who leads the Middle East Studies Program at George Washington University, explained to Fox News Digital that Khamenei’s power comes from his direct management of Iran’s principal power structures. “He wields significant power as the commander in chief of the armed forces, and he appoints the leaders of the IRGC, the Artesh (conventional military), the judiciary, and other key institutions,” he noted.

The Iranian Supreme Leader, Khamenei, made his first public appearance in several weeks, issuing fresh threats toward the U.S. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader Credit/Associated Press)

Azodi added that protocol and hierarchy also explain Khamenei’s absence from negotiations. “Iranians are very adamant about diplomatic protocols — that since other countries don’t have the equivalent rank, he does not participate in any negotiations because his ‘equal’ rank does not exist,” Azodi said. “Even when foreign heads of state visit him, there is only the Iranian flag, and foreign flags are not allowed.”

Omani Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr Hamad Al Busaidi, President Donald Trump’s Special Representative for the Middle East, Steve Witkoff and U.S. negotiator Jared Kushner meet ahead of the U.S.-Iran talks, in Muscat, the capital of Oman, on Feb. 06, 2026.  (Oman Foreign Ministry/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Iranian sources familiar with internal discussions described Khamenei as operating from a legacy mindset at this stage of his life. “The supreme leader sees the confrontation with Washington as defining his historical role and believes Iran can retaliate against U.S. interests in the region. Khamenei is not focused on personal risk and views strategic confrontation as part of preserving his legacy,” a Middle Eastern source speaking on the condition of anonymity told Fox News Digital.

Behnam Ben Taleblu, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told Fox News Digital that Khamenei remains the decisive figure in Iran’s system even as the regime faces pressure at home and abroad.

“He wields great influence in Iran but also exercises the greatest veto in Iran’s political hierarchy”

“He wields great influence in Iran but also exercises the greatest veto in Iran’s political hierarchy,” Ben Taleblu said.

He added, “The Iranian strategy… is to raise the cost of war in the thinking of the adversary,” he said, describing a system that signals willingness to talk while simultaneously preparing for confrontation.

He warned that “regimes that are afraid and lethal and weak can still be dangerous,” and said Tehran may believe threatening U.S. assets could deter a broader war even if such escalation risks triggering a stronger American response.

In this picture released by an official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei stands as army air force staff salute at the start of their meeting in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Feb. 8, 2019. Khamenei is defending “Death to America” chants that are standard fare at anti-U.S. rallies across Iran but says the chanting is aimed at America’s leaders and not its people.  (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP)

“Very difficult to say what Khamenei’s mindset is, but I think that he, along with other senior officials, think that the current conflict is not an isolated phenomenon but rather the continuation of the June 2025 conflict and the recent protests, which he called ‘an American coup,’” Azodi told Fox News Digital.

“I think that he thinks that the U.S. is definitely after a regime change and that needs to be resisted at all costs,” he added.

Inside Iran, frustration with Khamenei has become increasingly visible, according to a journalist reporting from within the country.

Cars burn in a street during a protest over the collapse of the currency’s value in Tehran, Iran, Jan. 8, 2026. (Stringer/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS)

“What people want more than anything else is for Khamenei to die… I hear it every day, everywhere I go — why doesn’t he die?” the journalist told Fox News Digital.

“He is perceived as God’s representative, while leaders of enemy states are viewed as representatives of Satan, which is why he never meets with them.”

“You just open the Twitter of Iranians… the tweet is, why don’t you die? And everybody knows who we are talking about. So a nation is waiting for him to die.”

The journalist said many Iranians no longer believe political reform is possible and instead see generational change as the only turning point.

Iranian worshipers hold up their hands as signs of unity with Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, during an anti-Israeli rally to condemn Israel’s attacks on Iran, in downtown Tehran, Iran, on June 20, 2025.  (Morteza Nikoubazl/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Iranian journalist in exile, Mehdi Ghadimi, told Fox News Digital that, “The Islamic government considers itself obligated to enforce Islamic law across the entire world. They harbor hatred toward Iranians and Jews, whom they regard as enemies of Islam,” he explained, “In such a structure, the leader is seen as more than a political ruler; he is perceived as God’s representative, while leaders of enemy states are viewed as representatives of Satan, which is why he never meets with them. If dialogue or compromise were to take place, his sacred image would collapse in the eyes of his supporters.”

He continued, “For this reason, groups labeled as ‘moderate,’ ‘reformist,’ or ‘pro-Western’ are created so that the West can negotiate with them,” Ghadimi added. “No one within the structure of the Islamic Republic thinks about anything other than defeating the Western world and establishing Islamic dominance globally. The diplomats presented to Western politicians as moderates are tasked with using diplomacy to buy time for Khamenei.”

The negotiations come amid heightened regional tensions, U.S. military deployments and unresolved disputes over Iran’s nuclear program and missile capabilities.

Regional analysts say that for the U.S., the central challenge remains unchanged. Diplomats can negotiate, but the final decision rests with one man — a leader shaped by decades of confrontation with the United States, focused on regime survival and determined to preserve his legacy even as Iran enters a new round of talks.