Pezeshkian says Iran prioritizes peace, seeks sanctions lift

• Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian met Malaysian PM Anwar Ibrahim for their first in-person bilateral talks, on the sidelines of Pezeshkian's broader South/Southeast Asia trip. 
• Pezeshkian said Iran has no issues with its neighboring countries. 

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said in a meeting with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim Saturday that Tehran's long-standing position is that it is not seeking confrontation with its neighbors, according to Iranian state media. 

Speaking during the bilateral meeting, Pezeshkian said Iran's foreign policy priority remains peace, adding that the country is simply asking for its international rights to be respected and for sanctions to be lifted, state media reported.

He went on to argue that Iran's disputes are not with countries in its own neighborhood. "We have no issues with our neighbors", he said. 

Instead, he pointed to the United States, European governments, and ‘Israel’ accusing them of pursuing a hegemonic agenda in the region that leaves no room for independent nations to chart their own course.

 Iran, he said, is only asking to exercise the rights it is entitled to under international law.

Pezeshkian also addressed the toll of recent hostilities, telling Anwar that Iran has endured significant injustices but remains committed to avoiding further conflict. 

According to the state media readout, he said Tehran does not want war or its continuation, and that despite everything inflicted on the Iranian people, the country continues to put peace first, repeating the call for Iran's rights to be recognized and for what he described as unjust sanctions to be lifted. 

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