Iran’s president rejects U.S. demands to limit nukes or missiles, vowing defiance after Israeli-American strikes crippled nuclear sites.
In yet another show of open defiance toward the West, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian declared Friday that Tehran will never abandon its nuclear ambitions or missile programs — despite repeated U.S. and international warnings. Speaking to state media, Pezeshkian asserted that Iran seeks peace “but not humiliation,” a claim that rings hollow after months of Iranian aggression, proxy warfare, and open threats against Israel.
“We are willing to hold talks under international frameworks, but not if they say you can’t have nuclear science or missiles,” Pezeshkian said defiantly.
His comments came just one day after U.S. President Donald Trump revealed that Iranian officials had quietly inquired about the possibility of sanctions relief — an admission that Tehran’s economy is buckling under renewed “snapback” sanctions imposed by the U.S., Britain, France, and Germany.
Israel and the United States jointly targeted key Iranian nuclear and military facilities during the 12-day Iran-Israel war in June, dealing a crippling blow to Tehran’s uranium enrichment program. Despite Pezeshkian’s bravado, analysts note that the strikes set back Iran’s nuclear infrastructure by years — though its leadership is now scrambling to rebuild and project strength.
“We will rebuild stronger than before,” Pezeshkian boasted this week, acknowledging that while structures were destroyed, Iran’s scientists still possess the expertise to restart nuclear development. The statement underscores Tehran’s continued defiance and deep frustration over Western isolation and internal unrest.
Adding fuel to the fire, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei lashed out at Washington, declaring that cooperation with the U.S. is “impossible” so long as it supports Israel. Khamenei’s rhetoric — calling Israel “the accursed Zionist regime” — once again exposes Iran’s obsession with the Jewish state, even as its people suffer under crushing inflation, food shortages, and censorship.
Israel, meanwhile, continues to monitor Tehran’s every move with intelligence precision, vowing that any threat — nuclear or otherwise — will be “met with force and finality.” The message is unmistakable: Israel will never allow Iran to cross the nuclear threshold.
