Iran's Pezeshkian accuses US of grave betrayal at UNGA over June nuclear strikes
In his first address to the United Nations General Assembly, Iran's president denounces U.S. and Israeli actions, ties them to wider regional tensions, and urges Muslim states to unite.
New York — Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian used his first address to the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday to accuse the United States and Israel of a 'grave betrayal of diplomacy' by carrying out airstrikes on Iranian cities and facilities, telling world leaders that the attacks violated international law and undermined efforts to advance peace.
"The aerial assault… constituted a grave betrayal of diplomacy and a subversion of efforts toward the establishment of stability and peace," the president said. "This brazen aggression, in addition to murdering citizens, women, scientists and intellectual elites of my country, inflicted a grievous blow upon the prospect of peace in the region."
In June, seven U.S. B-2 bombers dropped 30,000-pound bunker-buster bombs on Iran’s nuclear sites. The U.S. declared the mission a success, and former President Donald Trump said Iran’s nuclear program was "totally obliterated." Pezeshkian, however, claimed Iran never had intentions to develop a nuclear weapon and only enriched uranium for civil nuclear purposes. "We do not seek the weapons. This is our belief based on the edict issued by the Supreme Leader and by religious authorities," the Iranian president said. "We never sought weapons of mass destruction, nor will we ever seek them."
Image: Map of U.S. strikes on Iran
He accused Washington and its allies of a double standard, pointing to U.S. support for Israel in Gaza and other regional conflicts, while casting Iran as the victim of aggression that has killed civilians, scientists and journalists. He tied the airstrikes to a broader pattern of Western-backed aggression across the Middle East, citing Israel’s offensive in Gaza as "genocide" and denouncing the "Greater Israel" project as a delusional scheme destabilizing the entire region. He warned that such actions threaten global stability and urged Muslim states to unite in collective defense. "The world in these two years has witnessed a genocide in Gaza, the destruction of homes in Lebanon, the devastation of Syria’s infrastructure, the assault against the people of Yemen, and the assassination of Iran’s scientists," Pezeshkian said. "All of this under the full support of the most heavily armed regime on the face of the earth, under the pretext of self-defense. Would you countenance such things for yourselves?" The remarks were accompanied by a public display of Iran’s leadership, including the presence of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei alongside senior military officials in Tehran.
The Iranian leader portrayed his country as resilient in the face of pressure, insisting that military and economic coercion has backfired. "The patriotic and valiant people of Iran laid bare before the aggressors the fallacy and self-destruction of their arrogant calculations," he said. "The enemies of Iran unwittingly fortified the sacred national unity. The people of Iran, despite the most severe, protracted and crushing economic sanctions… rise in unison in support of their valiant armed forces." He reiterated that Iran does not seek weapons and framed the edict from the Supreme Leader and religious authorities as central to the country’s nuclear posture.
Pezeshkian also underscored the depth of Iran’s hostility toward Israel. He declared that those responsible for targeting children in Gaza "are not worthy of the name human being" and said such crimes demonstrate that Israel cannot be trusted as a partner in the region. The remarks reflect Tehran’s effort to position itself as a regional victim of Western-backed aggression while asserting its own refusal to abandon its nuclear program.
The speech at the United Nations General Assembly comes as tensions between Tehran and Washington remain elevated and regional conflicts continue to shape diplomacy. While Iran emphasizes civil aims for its nuclear program and frames sanctions as a form of collective punishment, Western officials have argued that Tehran’s program remains a core regional threat and a potential trigger for renewed instability. Pezeshkian’s address aimed to galvanize regional support and signal that Iran intends to resist what it describes as coercive pressure, even as diplomacy continues to maneuver around the contours of a fragile status quo.