President Rouhani's chief of staff, Mahmoud Vaezi, told reporters after a cabinet session on Wednesday: “During Rouhani’s last visit to New York for the UN General Assembly meeting, Donald Trump asked the Iranian delegation eight times to arrange a meeting with president Rouhani.”
Back in October, Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi confirmed speculations on Trump’s request for a meeting with Rouhani on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, but added that the request was rebuffed by the Iranian president.
“We have a transparent policy and clear position with regard to our relations with the US,” Vaezi added. “The characteristic of this Establishment and the Iranian people is that we will not yield to pressure. Trump should know that Iran and its people are different from North Korea and its people.”
He went on to add: "For 40 years now, the US has been threatening Iran for its Islamic principles and independence, also because the US used to have a stranglehold on Iran’s resources in the past.”
“The difference between Trump and others is that some issues that he raises is because he is not a politician,” he said. “We have no doubt that they have set up a psychological war room at the US Treasury Department and State Department, but we are talking about a sophisticated nation here.”
“Our people may have some demands from the government, but when it comes to US to decide for them, it is only natural that the people will make their own decisions free of [US] influence,” he added.
