Iran's President Pezeshkian says Trump speaks of peace and threatens at same time

Tehran would continue Iran-US nuclear talks but is not afraid of threats. "We are not seeking war," he said.

 Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian attends a press conference in Tehran, Iran, September 16, 2024.  (photo credit: Majid Asgaripour/WANA/via Reuters)
Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian attends a press conference in Tehran, Iran, September 16, 2024.
(photo credit: Majid Asgaripour/WANA/via Reuters)

Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Saturday that US President Donald Trump speaks simultaneously about peace and threats.

"Which should we believe?" Pezeshkian said at a naval event in Tehran. "On the one hand, he speaks of peace and on the other, he threatens with the most advanced tools of mass killing."

Tehran would continue Iran-US nuclear talks but is not afraid of threats. "We are not seeking war," he said.

Trump said on Friday that Iran had a US proposal about its nuclear programme and knows it needs to move quickly to resolve a decades-long dispute.

"More importantly, they know they have to move quickly or something bad — something bad's going to happen," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One after departing the United Arab Emirates on Friday, according to an audio recording of the remarks.

 IRANIAN PRESIDENT Masoud Pezeshkian attends a news conference in Tehran last week. At a cultural event, he was told not to read poetry in Azerbaijani, says the writer. (credit: WEST ASIA NEWS AGENCY/REUTERS)
IRANIAN PRESIDENT Masoud Pezeshkian attends a news conference in Tehran last week. At a cultural event, he was told not to read poetry in Azerbaijani, says the writer. (credit: WEST ASIA NEWS AGENCY/REUTERS)

Iran's position on nuclear talks

However, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in a post on X said Tehran had not received a US proposal.

"There is no scenario in which Iran abandons its hard-earned right to (uranium) enrichment for peaceful purposes..." he said.

Pezeshkian said Iran would not "back down from our legitimate rights".

"Because we refuse to bow to bullying, they say we are source of instability in the region," he said.

A fourth round of Iran-US talks ended in Oman last Sunday. A new round has not been scheduled yet.