NEW YORK — Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian on Tuesday vowed to “firmly defend” his country’s positions before departing for New York to attend the UN General Assembly.
“We emerged with our heads held high, and this is a source of dignity and pride for all of us. Therefore, we will firmly defend our positions in international forums,” he said before flying out of Iran, according to footage broadcast by state television.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrived in New York on Monday, leading Tehran’s diplomatic delegation at the annual gathering of world leaders at the United Nations, his ministry said.
Araghchi is the highest-ranking Iranian official to enter the United States since the Middle East war began in February.
As the US and Iran remain locked in a nearly seven-month-old war, Pezeshkian and his delegation will face strict restrictions during their stay in New York.
According to a report by The Wall Street Journal, the delegation will be allowed to travel between their Manhattan hotel and the UN headquarters to attend the UN General Assembly, but they cannot go for a walk in Central Park or shop on Fifth Avenue without permission.
The unusual arrangement reflects the tensions surrounding Pezeshkian’s visit.
The US has long imposed restrictions on Tehran’s diplomats, but the circumstances of the Iranian delegation are particularly unusual this year.
Araghchi spoke by phone with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres after his arrival and exchanged views on the agenda of the UN General Assembly, Iranian state television reported.
“Our most important objective is to use a major international platform to defend the legitimacy, rights, and interests of the Iranian people,” Araghchi was quoted as telling Iranian journalists.
Earlier, Iranian state media had reported that the Iranian delegation would be led by President Pezeshkian, and that the US had refused to issue visas to members of his delegation, including his communications team.
However, in a social post on X on Aragchi’s arrival in New York, Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei described the minister as “head of a diplomatic delegation” at the General Assembly.
Baqaei said Aragchi “will hold talks and consultations with numerous officials and foreign ministers attending the session.”
Araghchi left Iran on Sunday evening and had a stopover in Qatar.
Iran says it has conveyed to the US, via Qatar as mediator, conditions for reopening the strategic Strait of Hormuz oil and gas shipping route, which it has effectively choked off since the war began.
Trump has signaled he is open to meeting Pezeshkian during the UN General Assembly in New York, even as Washington weighs its next military move and Tehran issues fresh military warnings while tensions over Hormuz persist.
Trump’s comments have opened a rare possibility for direct contact between the two presidents to explore diplomatic channels and discuss ways to ease ongoing tensions.
Iran has sent Washington a list of conditions for renewed negotiations while Iranian military leaders warn that any new US attack would trigger retaliation against American bases and interests across the region.
Source: Saudi Gazette