Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, Araqchi said Iran’s diplomatic presence at this year’s session was highly active, with President Masoud Pezeshkian holding numerous meetings and interviews and delivering a major speech.
He said his own meetings with foreign counterparts and mediators focused on explaining the conditions set by Iran’s Supreme National Security Council for reopening the Strait of Hormuz and making progress in negotiations. The conditions were formally presented in the meetings and fully conveyed to the US side through mediators, he added.
Araqchi said Iran has defended its positions and proposals throughout the diplomatic engagements, adding that the country has demonstrated its strength both in defending itself and in the diplomatic arena by putting forward various proposals and establishing a diplomatic path.
He said the first reaction came from the US president, but Iran has yet to receive a definitive response through the mediators. “We are waiting for the final views to be conveyed by the mediators, and we will make a decision based on them,” Araqchi said, noting that statements from the US president have included both positive and contradictory remarks.
“Any move forward toward reopening the Strait of Hormuz is conditional on these conditions being met, and we will not back down from them,” the foreign minister stressed.
Araqchi also said the outlook for Iran is positive, arguing that the Iranian people have demonstrated their strength in the military, diplomatic and economic spheres, including in confronting sanctions. He said Iran’s adversaries have tried different approaches without achieving their objectives and that the only way out is “a negotiated solution based on dignity and justice” that guarantees the rights and legitimate demands of the Iranian people.
He further stressed that Iran has never closed the door to diplomacy or negotiations while maintaining its rights, saying, “No one in the world can accuse the Islamic Republic of Iran of not having tried the diplomatic path.”