Iran's president denies nuclear weapons ambitions, signals readiness for talks

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian denied his country was pursuing nuclear weapons and said it was prepared for dialogue while resisting coercion, The Korea Times reported. He made the remarks during talks Friday with Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze in Yerevan.

The meeting followed Georgia's suspension of aviation links with Iran weeks earlier after U.S. sanctions targeted Iranian airlines. The talks addressed regional security and bilateral relations as Georgia distinguished compliance with U.S. restrictions from imposing sanctions of its own.

The leaders met on the sidelines of a United Nations biodiversity summit in Yerevan, according to The Korea Times. Pezeshkian's office released an account of his remarks on Iran's nuclear intentions and willingness to engage in talks.

Pezeshkian also criticized U.S. sanctions against Iran. His office's statement paired his offer of dialogue with a rejection of efforts to force Iran into submission, the newspaper reported.

Iran's Tasnim news agency reported that Pezeshkian called for a defined schedule for broadening cooperation with Georgia. The request put bilateral cooperation on the agenda alongside the discussion of security.

The accounts differed on remarks attributed to Kobakhidze. Tasnim said he opposed outside interference in neighboring states' domestic affairs, but the Georgian prime minister's office did not include those comments in its account, according to The Korea Times.

Kobakhidze's office said the leaders discussed ties between their countries and regional security. It emphasized diplomacy and dialogue as means to reduce tensions and secure lasting peace.

Georgia's Civil Aviation Agency said in September it would follow the U.S. sanctions regime, according to The Korea Times. Kobakhidze nevertheless maintained that Georgia was not applying separate bilateral sanctions against Iran.