Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told the United Nations on Wednesday that Iran would not be bullied into surrender, but remained ready for dialogue and negotiations without accepting the language of force.
His defiant speech came a day after US President Donald Trump threatened to “annihilate” the Islamic Republic if no deal was reached. The US delegation left the chamber as Pezeshkian spoke, reported by Euro News.
Pezeshkian said Iran had been a victim of terrorism, not its source. He held up photographs of children killed in a missile strike on a school in Minab, where 156 people reportedly died during the opening days of the war. He also displayed a photograph of former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in the same period.
“The US president described us as terrorists. We have been the victims of terrorism,” Pezeshkian said. He accused the United States and Israel of carrying out illegal attacks on Iranian civilians and infrastructure, insisting that Iran’s military capabilities were intended only for self defence.
Addressing the nuclear dispute, he said there could be no military solution. He questioned why nuclear knowledge should belong only to a few countries and criticised what he described as a double standard: “The atomic bomb is in Israel, but the inspectors are in Iran.”
Pezeshkian also warned that Iran would not surrender its right to navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, including in its own waters. He said lasting security in the Middle East could be achieved only collectively.
Toward the end of his speech, he addressed Trump directly, saying Iran was prepared for diplomacy but would not negotiate under threats. “Yes, they did hit us, but we did not bend the knee,” he declared.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio called the speech hypocritical. Trump later described recent contacts between US and Iranian representatives as positive, although Rubio said they did not amount to a major breakthrough. Iran’s foreign ministry said the talks had produced “nothing new”.
