TEHRAN (Iran News)  He made the remarks on Monday while addressing Iranian and foreign reporters during his first press conference since he took office late August.

“We are not in conflict with anyone,” the Iranian president stated.

He said that his administration will negotiate with the West on contentious issues and expand relations with neighboring countries to improve the economy and achieve long-term objectives, Press TV reported.

However, he added that the United States first needs to prove it is prepared to negotiate in good faith and is committed to its international obligations. The president noted that so far the Americans have “closed all avenues to us.”

Pezeshkian emphasized that Iran is committed to the agreements it signed with the US and Europe. “We do not seek atomic weapons, but they (the West) are threatening us and say Iran should not possess any missile.”

He said Iran will pursue every possible path leading to the removal of obstacles.

At the first step, the president said, Iran will create common views and language with its neighboring countries to establish a region full of peace and tranquility.

It is the foreign powers which are hindering the establishment of peace in the region by creating economic, cultural and ethnic conflicts, Pezeshkian said.

He underscored the need for Iran to remain strong, saying, “We need defense power to maintain security of our people and country.”

He said Iran’s cooperation with regional countries via connecting corridors can improve the access of Iran and China to the respective markets through the Silk Road.

The Iranian president described China as a “strategic” partner and vowed to further develop ties between the two countries.

The Iranian president said his attendance at the 2024 meeting of the United Nations General Assembly in New York will be “to defend the rights of our people because we do favor peace and not war.”

Asked about the possibility of his meeting with the US president, Pezeshkian said the United States must prove its sincerity in practice. The Iranian president said Tehran should see whether or not Washington is committed to its obligations.

“Americans must show that they are not hostile to us. We did not set up bases around their country and did not impose sanctions on them. Rather, we are brothers with the American people,” Pezeshkian stated.

The Iranian president further slammed the West’s inaction toward Israel’s barbarism in Gaza and urged the international community not to allow one group, backed by super powers, to kill innocent people.

He also reaffirmed the need to settle differences between Iran and Saudi Arabia and said he welcomes any measure which will bring the two Muslim countries closer together.

Muslims must foster unity to make the Israeli regime understand that it has no right to kill children, women and the elderly, the Iranian president said. “If we join hands, Israel will not dare to do this.”