Iran International
A clash over Iran’s nuclear path has intensified in Tehran, with hardliners demanding weaponization while others warn such moves invite disaster just three days before the automatic return of UN sanctions.
The debate was sharpened by near-simultaneous interventions from Donald Trump, Ali Khamenei and President Masoud Pezeshkian all within 24 hours.
In his Tehran speech, delivered as Pezeshkian landed in New York, Khamenei ruled out any rapprochement with the United States “for at least another 30 years” and dismissed the idea of building nuclear weapons, declaring them forbidden “for the time being and in the future.”
Khamenei’s words were an apparent blow to more than 70 hardline lawmakers who had called for Tehran to start producing bombs.
Moderates seized on his stance to attack the MPs.
Political activist Ghorban Ali Salavatian posted their photos on X: “They got a swift response to their call for bombs. I hope they understand they were wrong—though it’s unlikely they do.”
Reformist Mohammad Sohafi listed all 71 names, warning: “Let us keep in mind, in case of a new attack by Israel on Iran, that these MPs have invited the attack.”
Critics stressed that hardliners seem oblivious to how talk of leaving the Non-Proliferation Treaty or pursuing nuclear weapons effectively invites military strikes. Many still recall the cleric who, near the end of Hassan Rouhani’s presidency, confused the NPT with “MP3.”
But if moderates thought the hardliners’ embarrassment gave them an opening, they were soon reminded that Khamenei had no intention of granting their wish for US diplomacy.
Pezeshkian’s UNGA address ultimately disappointed both camps, reflecting the passivity and indecision that have come to define his administration. No one expected a breakthrough. The leader had already set the tone.
On social media, many mocked moderates for their naïve optimism about Pezeshkian meeting Trump.
“You cannot just shout to the US president that Pezeshkian is in town and wants to talk,” one user wrote. “Such a meeting takes months of preparation.”
Critics also reminded both Khamenei and Pezeshkian—who slammed Israel and the United States for attacking Iran while negotiations were ongoing—that Iran had offered no concrete proposals then, and still has none today.
Officials often dismiss Western calls for talks as “political,” while outlets like the Khamenei-linked Kayhan insist the West and the IAEA seek only concessions.
What they ignore is that negotiations are about trading concessions to reach compromise—a word treated in the Islamic Republic’s rhetoric as worse than a curse.
Just before Pezeshkian’s trip to New York Moderates, a group of centrist politicians gathered at the home of former Tehran mayor Gholamhossein Karbaschi, discussing the possibility of the president getting leader’s approval to meet his American counterpart.
Nearly all backed the idea, according to media reports, except Ali Akbar Nateq Nouri, a former parliament speaker and once Inspector General of the office of the supreme leader.
“Change is absolutely impossible,” Nateq was reported as saying.
