Pezeshkian at UN: Iran does not want nuclear weapons

Iranian President Masoud Pezizian said today in a speech at the UN General Assembly session in New York that Iran does not want to build nuclear weapons, thereby rejecting Western claims to that effect.

"Here I declare once again before this Assembly that Iran has never sought and will never seek to build an atomic bomb. We do not want nuclear weapons," said Pezeshkian.

Iran's negotiations with France, Britain and Germany are continuing in an attempt to reach an agreement to control Iran's nuclear program and avoid the reimposition of UN sanctions on Tehran from Saturday, which the UN Security Council agreed to last week, but that decision could still change.

The Iranian president described the Security Council's decision as "illegal" and said that the Europeans "denigrate Iran's efforts, considering them insufficient."

The 2015 agreement, signed by France, the UK, Germany, the US, China, Russia and Iran, envisaged a reduction in Tehran's nuclear activities.

However, in 2018, during his first term, US President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the US from the agreement and reimposed sanctions on Iran. Tehran then abandoned certain commitments, particularly restrictions on uranium enrichment.

Western countries suspect Iran is trying to acquire nuclear weapons. Tehran denies this and defends its right to develop a civilian nuclear program.