Will Trump meet Iranian President Pezeshkian at the UN General Assembly in New York? Here's what to expect as the US-Iran war rages on

US President Donald Trump indicated on Sunday (local time) that he is open to a meeting with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian at the UN General Assembly in New York.

Fox News reporter Trey Yingst claimed to have asked Trump if he would be willing to meet with Pezeshkian during the UN General Assembly’s high-level week. Yingst quoted Trump in response: “He said he would probably be open to it.”

The statement came even as Washington considers its next military move and the Trump administration maintains economic pressure on Tehran. Meanwhile, Tehran earlier presented seven conditions for ending the nearly seven-month-old war.

According to Yingst, Trump outlined three possible courses of action on Iran: “wiping out Iran,” allowing it to “rot economically” or reaching a deal with Tehran.

“Very big things are going to happen in the not-so-distant future,” Yingst said, referring to Trump’s assessment of the situation.

Pezeshkian is in New York to attend the 81st session of the UN General Assembly, which runs from September 22-26 and 28.

The Iranian president is the highest-ranking Iranian official to set foot on American soil since the start of the Middle East war, which began in late February with US-Israeli attacks on Iran.

Both Trump and Pezeshkian are expected to address the UN meeting this week. They are expected to say this:

Trump

President Donald Trump is scheduled to address the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday. He is widely expected to justify US action in Iran while discussing his efforts to forge peace deals around the world. The president is also expected to discuss progress on his 20-point Gaza peace plan, the report added.

The UN General Assembly meeting is significant because it comes as Trump faces a deeply unpopular war with Iran, raising concerns about the unpredictability of AI and allies who have begun to openly question whether the US remains a trustworthy partner.

Trump will use his address to the UN General Assembly on Tuesday to present himself as a global leader who has “faced complex issues head on” – even as the war he launched against Iran in February enters its seventh month with no end in sight.

Administration officials have previously indicated that Trump will demonstrate in his speech that the world is better off under his leadership.

“We expect the president to emphasize how he and his administration have faced complex issues directly around the world,” Ambassador Mike Waltz, Trump’s top envoy to the international body, told reporters.

Trump will argue in his speech that the war in Iran is necessary to keep the nation from having a nuclear weapon, a US official was quoted as saying by the New York Times.

“He’ll touch on the importance of making sure Iran never has a nuclear weapon, which not only the United States has demanded, the United Nations Security Council has demanded, and repeated resolutions, and he’ll talk about some of the achievements of the United States over the last year, since he was last here, including in the Western Hemisphere, progress on the president’s 20-point peace plan,” Waltz was quoted as saying in Gaza.

Later in the day, Trump will meet with British Prime Minister Andy Burnham, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, interim Venezuelan leader Delcy Rodriguez, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, Greenlandic Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen and representatives of the Gulf states of the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Bahrain, Kuwait. In the evening, he can meet dozens of other leaders, albeit briefly, during the leaders’ reception.

Among the closely watched meetings will be a seven-party meeting with Gulf leaders, many of whom are alarmed by recent advances by the Houthis, Iran-backed militants who have seized large swaths of Yemen, attacked US ally Saudi Arabia and threatened shipping through the strategic Bab el-Mandab Strait.

Iranian pezeshkian

According to the country’s semi-official Tasnim news agency, Pezeshkian will address the rally and present Iran’s positions on “international developments”, with a particular focus on its war with the US and Israel.

As Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian left for New York to attend the UN General Assembly, he vowed to “firmly defend” his country’s position.

“We came out with our heads held high, and that is a source of dignity and pride for all of us. That’s why we will firmly defend our positions in international forums,” Pezeshkian said before departing Iran, according to footage broadcast on state television, AFP reported.

“We will use this opportunity to the best of our ability to convey the plight of Iran to the international community. We will strongly tell our adversaries that despite all the injustices and injustices, the Iranian people stand for their cause,” he said.

Meanwhile, ANI quoted the Iranian president as saying, “We will strongly raise Iran’s positions in international forums. The issues we will raise in the UN express the oppressed state of the Iranian nation, the crimes that have been committed and the mistrust that has been created.”

“We went to the negotiating table several times and signed agreements, but unfortunately the whole world saw how commitments were not fulfilled and files were trampled,” he reportedly said.

Pezeshkian will also hold talks with leaders of several countries on the sidelines of the event, which is scheduled to take place on September 22-26 and 28.

President Pezeshkian will also hold separate meetings with educated Iranians living in the United States, as well as American elites and think tanks, ABI said.

Strait of Hormuz

The reopening of the strategic Strait of Hormuz remains at the heart of the conflict between Tehran and Washington.

Traffic in the vital maritime corridor, through which a fifth of the world’s hydrocarbons passed before the war, has been severely disrupted, with Iran firing at commercial ships and demanding it approve passage.

In response, the United States maintains a counter-blockade of Iranian ports while increasing economic pressure on Iran.