Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told the French President that discussions to end the current war are meaningless without guarantees against future attacks on Iran, vowing not to surrender to the US and Israel.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian declared that discussions regarding an end to the ongoing regional war are futile without strict assurances against future strikes on Iranian territory. In a conversation with the French President, Pezeshkian emphasized that Iran did not start the war and that self-defense against invasion is a natural right and we are skilled at it, according to Qatari broadcaster Al Jazeera.
The statements follow the unprecedented US-Israeli military campaign against Iran, known as Operation Epic Wrath, which recently devastated Iranian infrastructure and killed Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Addressing this broader conflict, Pezeshkian stated that regional peace and stability are impossible to achieve while ignoring the Zionist-American invasion of our country, as reported by the Iraqi channel ONEIQ1. The Lebanese channel Al Mayadeen, which holds a pro-Resistance Axis editorial stance, similarly highlighted Pezeshkian's assertion that security and stability in the region will not be achieved by ignoring the Zionist-American aggression.
Pezeshkian also demanded immediate changes to the regional security posture. According to ONEIQ1, he insisted that the use of US bases in neighboring countries to target Iran must stop, as it aims to destabilize Iran's regional relations. Furthermore, the state-run Iraqi News Agency (INA) reported his firm declaration that Iran will not surrender. He called upon the international community to condemn the invasion and compel the aggressors to respect international law, stating that Iran will not yield to bullies or arrogant powers.
Sources identically capture the official remarks from Iran's President to the French President. The translations vary slightly in their descriptors for the US and Israel, interchanging terms like 'bullies' and 'arrogant powers' based on the specific Arabic wording used by each channel ('المتنمرين' vs 'للمتغطرسين'). The politically charged terms 'Zionist-American invasion' and 'aggression' are translated faithfully to reflect the stance of the Arabic-language reports.