Iran President Vows No Surrender to US but Backs Diplomacy at UN

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told the United Nations on Sept 23 that Tehran will never surrender in the ongoing war with the United States, while maintaining that his country still believes in diplomacy to end the conflict, according to official reports from AFP.

Speaking for the first time at the UN since Washington and Israel launched an all-out war on his country, Pezeshkian struck a defiant tone in Manhattan. According to AFP, he accused Washington of terrorism for assassinating former supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei at the start of the war and held up a photograph of the dead leader before insisting that Tehran had never started the conflict.

The address followed a speech delivered on Sept 22 by US President Donald Trump, who told the UN that he was weighing whether to annihilate Iran while also hailing renewed talks between Tehran and Washington’s negotiators. Pezeshkian made no reference to those talks during his speech. According to AFP, the Iranian leader warned that the resistance of the Iranian people would only increase in the face of sanctions, increased pressure, and bullying.

Strait of Hormuz and Energy Market Pressures

Pezeshkian also addressed the strategic waterway that has faced intermittent blockades since the conflict began, causing global energy prices to spike. According to AFP, he insisted that Tehran would not allow the Strait of Hormuz to be used for aggression against his country.

We cannot let some have free access and bolster their interests from the waterway, while at the same time using that waterway to impose their aggression upon us, Pezeshkian said, as reported by AFP.

Brent crude hovered around $100 a barrel, holding near two-week lows as markets watched for signs of diplomatic progress. The price stability followed earlier surges driven by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis launching a major offensive that threatened traffic through the Red Sea.

Stalled Diplomacy and Indirect Talks in New York

The annual UN gathering in New York provided the occasion for Iranian and US officials to hold their first known indirect talks since a ceasefire collapsed in July. Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi and US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner communicated through mediators on the sidelines.

Steve and Jared had a very productive meeting today with mediators of Iran, Trump said on Sept 22, I think there’s a lot of momentum for them to make a deal. It’s what we’re hearing from everybody.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei stated that Tehran had engaged with Washington through a Qatari mediator and conveyed conditions, including an end to the war on all fronts and a halt to US acts of aggression. However, the diplomatic contact caused a backlash among hardliners in Iranian media, with a Tasnim news agency opinion piece criticizing the contacts as a major gift to Trump.

Sanctions and Regional Aviation Threats

In a potential new flashpoint, Iran threatened to act against neighboring countries if they abide by new US sanctions intended to ground Iranian civilian aircraft worldwide. Washington announced plans to impose secondary sanctions against any country allowing Iranian flights.

Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, told state TV that Iran would ensure neighboring countries’ airports could not function if they stop Iranian flights. The nearly seven-month conflict, launched by Trump in February under the name Operation Epic Fury alongside Israel, continues to disrupt global energy supplies and spread across the region.