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Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Saturday said his country was willing to engage in dialogue with the United States as equals, without clarifying whether Tehran would participate in direct talks.
The president spoke after U.S. President Donald Trump, who has called on Tehran to hold direct negotiations on its nuclear program, threatened to bomb Iran if diplomacy fails.
Iran’s rial currency traded Saturday at a record low against the U.S. dollar as the country returned to work after a long holiday, costing over 1 million rials for a single greenback as tensions between Tehran and Washington likely will push it even lower.
The exchange rate had plunged to over 1 million rials during the Persian New Year, Nowruz, as currency shops closed and only informal trading took place on the streets, creating additional pressure on the market. But as traders resumed work Saturday, the rate fell even further to 1,043,000 to the dollar, signaling the new low appeared here to stay.
On Ferdowsi Street in Iran’s capital, Tehran, the heart of the country’s money exchanges, some traders even switched off their electronic signs showing the going rate as uncertainty loomed over how much further the rial could drop. “We turn it off since we are not sure about the successive changes of the rate,” said Reza Sharifi, who works at one exchange.
Iran’s economy has been severely affected by international sanctions, particularly after U.S. President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew America from Tehran’s nuclear deal with world powers in 2018. At the time of the 2015 deal, which saw Iran drastically limit its enrichment and stockpiling of uranium in exchange for lifting of international sanctions, the rial traded at 32,000 to the dollar.
Iran said it was ready to engage in dialogue with the United States but refuses direct talks under threats and pressure. "The Islamic Republic of Iran wants dialogue on equal footing," Pezeshkian said during a meeting, according to the presidency's website.
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On Thursday, Trump said he would prefer to hold "direct talks" with Iran. "I think it goes faster and you understand the other side a lot better than if you go through intermediaries," the US president argued.
"If you want negotiations, then what is the point of threatening?" Pezeshkian asked. "Today, America is not only humiliating Iran, but also the world," Pezeshkian added, in an apparent reference to recent policies adopted by Trump, including imposing tariffs on imported goods.
Western countries, led by the United States, have for decades accused Tehran of seeking nuclear weapons. Iran rejects these allegations and maintains that its nuclear activities exist solely for civilian purposes.
On Monday, Ali Larijani, a close advisor to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, warned that while Iran was not seeking nuclear weapons, it would "have no choice but to do so" in the event of an attack against the country.
First published: 16:18, 04.05.25