Iran will not bow down to excessive demands, Pezeshkian says

Iran’s currency weakened on Saturday, slipping to 1,030,000 rials per US dollar in Tehran’s open market, a day after the UN Security Council voted down a resolution to permanently lift sanctions on Tehran.

“The Islamic Republic will definitely deliver a serious, decisive, and unhesitating response,” Iranian lawmaker Alireza Salimi said after the UN Security Council voted down a resolution to permanently lift sanctions on Tehran.

Salimi, a member of parliament’s presiding board, told the semi-official ISNA news agency that Iran had “multiple options on the table, one of which is withdrawal from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).”

"We warn the countries that exploit Iran's goodwill for 'dialogue' and close the doors of diplomacy to themselves that 'maximum pressure' never works, and this time they will regret it harder than ever," said Ebrahim Azizi, head of the Iranian parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee.

Iran’s deputy foreign minister Saeed Khatibzadeh accused Britain, France and Germany of seeking a pretext to escalate tensions after triggering the snapback mechanism to restore UN sanctions on Iran.

“The European troika are providing a pretext for further tensions, and these three countries must be cautious,” he said in remarks to Hezbollah-affiliated Al Mayadeen.

“The window of diplomacy is still open, and diplomacy is always more attractive than escalating tensions,” he added.

An Iranian lawmaker warned that the country is ready to pull back from its international nuclear commitments after the UN Security Council voted down a resolution to permanently lift sanctions on Tehran.

"The Islamic Republic is prepared for any scenario, including withdrawal from the agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and even seriously considering withdrawal from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)," said Fada-Hossein Maleki, a member of parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee.