Iranian President Pezhechiyan went to the United States to attend the United Nations General Assembly

China News Weekly reporter: Chen Jialin

Published in the 1255th issue of "China News Weekly" magazine

As the U.S.-Israeli war enters its seventh month, Iranian President Pezhichiyan appeared in Manhattan under the tight protection of the U.S. Secret Service. This is the first time that a foreign leader has attended the United Nations General Assembly in New York while his country is at war with the United States.

On the podium of the United Nations General Assembly, the president, who is known for his moderateness, changed his restraint after last year's "12-Day War" and responded strongly to Trump's threats. After stepping off the podium, he and Iranian Foreign Minister Araghchi accepted intensive interviews with international media to explain Iran's position, and at the same time resumed diplomatic contacts with Washington that had been suspended for three months.

The United Nations General Assembly, which opens in September every year, once opened a breakthrough for US-Iran relations. In 2013, the historic contact between then US Secretary of State John Kerry and Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif in New York laid the foundation for the Iran nuclear agreement two years later. But it remains unclear whether the conference can pave the way for an end to the war.

On September 27, local time, the day after vetoing the peace plan proposed by Iran, Trump stated that US-Iran negotiations are expected to resume in the new week. Araghchi responded that Iran is ready to fight a "doomsday war" with the United States, but he still considers diplomatic channels as one of the options so as not to "miss any opportunity for peace."

"Special plane for senior citizens"

The impact of war and sanctions ran through Pezeshchiyan's trip to New York.

The 34-year-old Airbus A340-300 carrying Pezeshchiyan across the Atlantic Ocean was a 34-year-old aircraft. This "elderly aircraft" was once in service with Virgin Atlantic and has just completed an overhaul in recent weeks and joined the Iranian government fleet. Affected by Western sanctions, Iran is unable to purchase new passenger aircraft and original parts. The last Iranian presidential plane was not young either—it was already 27 years old when it was bombed by Israel in March.

Despite having a direct range to New York, the plane landed in Algiers, the capital of Algeria, for inspection and refueling. Iran's civil aviation authority said the plane did not malfunction and it was a prearranged technical stop.

When Pezeshchiyan and his delegation set off on their trip, the United States was tightening sanctions on Iran's aviation industry. Washington has warned that companies that continue to provide fuel, maintenance and ground support to Iranian airlines may face secondary sanctions. Aviation observers judge that the support work was completed in advance in Algeria, which has friendly relations, in order to reduce the risk of the aircraft encountering service restrictions after entering the United States.

It is worth noting that on the return trip, Pezeshchiyan’s special plane flew directly from New York to Tehran without any further stops on the way. This shows that the aircraft has received necessary fuel and ground support in the United States and is not "trapped" by the new round of sanctions as U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent previously suggested.

Over the past few decades, no matter how U.S.-Iran relations have deteriorated, Iran has almost never given up the rostrum provided by the United Nations. In 1980, when the hostage crisis in Tehran was not yet over and the Iran-Iraq war had just broken out, then-Iranian Prime Minister Rajaei went to New York to call on the international community to condemn the Iraqi invasion. In 1987, Khamenei, who later became the supreme leader of Iran, also addressed the United Nations General Assembly as the president of Iran.

However, there were still doubts before the meeting whether Pezeshchiyan could make the trip this time. According to the United Nations Headquarters Agreement, the United States, as the host country, should in principle allow representatives from various countries to enter the country to participate in the conference. However, there is no public precedent in history for the president of a country at war with the United States to personally set foot on American soil. Another unusual detail: Before Pezeshchiyan left for New York, he did not meet with Iran's supreme leader as is customary.

In the end, Washington only issued visas to a "core delegation" composed of Pezeshchiyan, Foreign Minister Araghchi and "essential workers." Some of the entourage, including members of the presidential press and communication team, were not granted entry permission. At the same time, the U.S. State Department reiterated restrictions on the scope and movement of Iranian diplomats, prohibiting Iranian officials from purchasing luxury goods and applying for memberships in warehouse stores such as Sam's Club. The U.S. government also reminded New York businesses on social media to be vigilant and "not to become accomplices in violations."

In the past, the Iranian delegation would book several floors of rooms in a luxury hotel adjacent to the United Nations headquarters. On the evening of September 22, after Pezeshchiyan and his entourage landed in New York, they stayed at the official residence of Iran's Permanent Representative to the United Nations. Iran's Fars News Agency stated that this arrangement is to save costs.

This frugal gesture has the implication of showing Iran that we can overcome difficulties together. The U.S. naval blockade has almost cut off the country's most important source of foreign exchange. Since the outbreak of the war, Iran's oil exports have plummeted by more than 80%, the economy has shrunk by 10%, and the inflation rate in August was close to 85%.

Confrontation "on the same stage"

Pezeshchiyan set out amidst the debate over whether he should go to the United States.

A year ago, after the United States and Israel launched a 12-day bombing campaign against Iran, Pezeshchiyan condemned the attack as a "betrayal of diplomacy" in his speech at the United Nations General Assembly, but did not name Trump and mainly targeted Israel.

The Fars News Agency, which has close ties with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, believes that the president's trip to the United States again will only give Trump an opportunity to use negotiations to contain Iran. "Le Monde", which has close ties with the Supreme Leader's Office, warned that "New York is not a place for smiles and negotiations" and that Pezeshchiyan must not release any signal that may be interpreted as weakness by the United States.

On September 22, on the first day of the general debate of the 81st United Nations General Assembly, Trump told dignitaries from various countries that if an agreement could not be reached, the United States would "totally eliminate" Iran. He also predicted that "oil prices will plummet" after Iran reaches an agreement with the United States after the November midterm elections to dismantle its nuclear facilities and end the war.

Faced with Trump's blatant threats, Pezeshchiyan decided to overturn his previously prepared speech and reorganize his response. The next day, he stood on the same podium wearing a black shirt as a symbol of mourning. "The President of the United States calls us terrorists. We are the victims of terrorism." At this point, Pezeshchiyan held up a photo of the children who were killed in a school in Minab. According to Iranian official data, a US air strike at the end of February killed more than 150 people at the school, about 120 of whom were schoolchildren. Not long ago, the United Nations Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran issued a report, concluding that there is reasonable basis to conclude that the US military committed war crimes in this attack. Pezeshchiyan's accusation was not over yet. The only member of the American delegation at the scene had already stood up and left.

Subsequently, Pezhechiyan pointed the finger at the "double standards" of Israel and the international nuclear order: "The nuclear bombs are in Israel, but the inspectors are in Iran; Israel kills people, but it is Iran that is subject to sanctions."

This tough speech did not completely close the door to diplomacy. Pezeshchiyan emphasized at the end that Iran is still willing to negotiate, but it does not accept "the language of power."

Netanyahu, another target of Pezeshitsyan's criticism, stood on the same podium a day later. When he spoke, the Iranian delegation only left a framed photo on the table, which showed Soleimani, the commander of the "Quds Force" who was attacked and killed by the US military in 2020. Looking at the large empty seats, Netanyahu retorted: "If there are still moral cowards who have not left, please leave now."

The confrontation inside the UN General Assembly partially dispelled the negative evaluation of Pezeshchiyan's trip in Iran. Le Monde, which had previously been sharply critical, wrote on its front page the next day: "Well done, Mr. President." Establishment figures such as Speaker Qalibaf, Justice Director Ejei, and Supreme Leader Advisor Mukhbel also expressed their opinions one after another, praising him for his tenacious and powerful voice in New York.

Acceleration program

While Pezhechiyan was confronting Trump at the UN General Assembly, a new round of communication between the United States and Iran had begun.

Iranian Foreign Minister Araghchi, who arrived in New York before Pezeshchiyan, had about three hours of indirect contact with U.S. presidential envoy Witkov and Trump's son-in-law Kushner through the mediation of Qatar. This is the first time that the United States and Iran have resumed political communication since the agreement broke down in July. Witkoff said afterwards that he "felt good" and Trump also described the contact as "productive."

Two days later, Pezeshchiyan and Araghchi announced an "acceleration plan" to invited journalists and think tankers at a small-scale briefing: the United States would lift the blockade of Iranian ports, waive oil sanctions, release frozen assets, and promote a broader regional ceasefire; in exchange, Iran would resume navigation in the Strait of Hormuz within seven days, and then discuss its nuclear program and final agreement with the United States.

This is not a brand new deal and basically follows the framework of the June Memorandum of Understanding. The most obvious change is that Iran claims to have formulated a navigation arrangement in the Strait of Hormuz with Oman and requires the United States to use this as a basis for resuming negotiations.

The Memorandum of Understanding between the United States and Iran collapsed shortly after it was signed, and the two sides have been fighting again since July. Yemen's pro-Iranian Houthi armed group also intervened in the war, breaking out a new round of conflict with Saudi Arabia, exacerbating regional tensions.

Hamidreza Aziz, a senior analyst at the International Crisis Group, believes that the Iranian leadership has judged that if there is still a chance to reach an agreement, it is more likely to be reached before the U.S. midterm elections in November than after the elections. Therefore, Tehran repackaged the old plan and compressed the original 30-day implementation period of the memorandum of understanding to seven days.

After the initial shock of the US-Israeli war, Gulf oil producers found ways to bypass the Strait of Hormuz and export some of their oil. These alternative routes are now also under attack from Iran’s regional allies. Affected by this, oil prices jumped from more than 70 US dollars per barrel in August to 110 US dollars in September. By the end of September, the risk of larger-scale fighting between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis has become very real. If this happens, an energy crisis that will drag the world into recession is just around the corner.

A Reuters/Ipsos poll at the end of August showed that 63% of Americans opposed a U.S.-Israeli war with Iraq. If oil prices continue to rise, it will intensify U.S. voters' dissatisfaction with the cost of living ahead of the midterm elections.

But Trump rejected the plan the same day Pezeshchiyan left New York. "They lost too badly, so they wanted to reach an agreement." In his view, Iran's initiative to propose a plan just proves that the blockade and sanctions are working. Rather than lifting pressure at this time, it would be better to continue waiting and force Iran to make more concessions. The Wall Street Journal also reported that Trump has told aides that he may resume bombing Iran after the midterm elections.

Iran did not expect this outcome. Aziz believes that Iran’s choice to throw out a new proposal during the UN General Assembly is not only to strive for a ceasefire, but also to leave a record for the failure of negotiations: even if Trump refuses, Iran can still claim to domestic and foreign countries that it has provided diplomatic exports, while the United States has chosen to continue the blockade and war.

While the negotiations are at a stalemate, discussions within Iran's top leadership have begun to turn to how the next phase of the contest will unfold once diplomacy fails.

Noor News, which has close ties with Iran's security agencies, believes that the US blockade of Iran is extending from the sea to the air. If pressure continues to spread overland, Turkey, Iraq, Pakistan and Central Asian countries bordering Iran will also be involved in this game around transportation corridors.

"Tehran expects that once the negotiations break down, the situation will enter a more complicated stage." Iranian analyst Babak Wahdad pointed out that Iran's next goal may not be to break the blockade immediately, but to further transmit the costs of the blockade outward, making the costs borne by all participants become increasingly heavy.

"China News Weekly" Issue 37, 2026