Iran ready for nuclear talks with transparency: Rouhani

In his address to the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, Rouhani said the Iranian nation was ready for cooperation with the international community and all rational players based on equal footing and mutual respect.

The Iranian president urged his US counterpart Barack Obama to reject "the short-sighted interest of warmongering pressure groups” if he wants "to manage differences" with Tehran.

Rouhani told the assembly that Iran poses "absolutely no threat to the world," but it is a harbinger of peace and security in a region engulfed in chaos.

"Nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction have no place in Iran's security and defense doctrine, and contradict our fundamental religious and ethical convictions," he said.

Rouhani stated that the Iranian nuclear energy program has always been a peaceful one, saying, "This has been, and will always be, the objective of the Islamic Republic of Iran."

The Iranian president slammed sanctions imposed against Iran over the country’s nuclear energy program as “violent” saying, "The negative impact is not nearly limited to the intended victims of sanctions."

It is "an illusion, and extremely unrealistic, to presume that the peaceful nature of the nuclear program of Iran could be ensured through impeding the program via illegitimate pressures," Rouhani added.

He said the only way to resolve the nuclear issue is for the international community to respect Iran's inalienable right to peaceful nuclear program.

Rouhani also condemned the use of militaristic approaches in dealing with global challenges, saying militarism of “some players” and generalization of western values poses a true danger to the world peace.

He also condemned drone attacks on "innocent people" and said they should be stopped.

Rouhani also said there is no military solution to the crisis in Syria and the use of force will only exacerbate the crisis.

He also warned that the greatest threat to the Middle East is the danger of chemical weapons falling into the hands of extremists and terrorist groups.

The Iranian president added that there is no violent solution to crises around the world and called for the creation of UN-sponsored plan called “The World Against Violence and Extremism.”

Rouhani spoke a few hours after Obama told the assembly that Washington prefers a diplomatic solution to its disputes with Iran, noting that the resolution of Iran’s nuclear issue can bring about a possible thaw in relations between the two countries.

The United States, Israel, and some of their allies have repeatedly accused Iran of pursuing non-civilian objectives in its nuclear energy program.

Iran rejects the allegation, arguing that as a committed signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and a member of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), it has the right to use nuclear technology for peaceful purposes.

In addition, the IAEA has conducted numerous inspections of Iran's nuclear facilities but has never found any evidence showing that the Iranian nuclear program has been diverted toward military objectives.

HK