Iran said on Monday a meeting between Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump at the United Nations this month "is not on the agenda", after the White House on Sunday left open the possibility of a potential meeting.
"Neither is such an event (Trump-Rouhani meeting in New York) on our agenda, nor will it happen. Such a meeting will not take place," Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said in remarks carried by state TV. Tehran has repeatedly rejected such a meeting.
President Trump who in the past has offered talks with Iran without preconditions, tweeted early Monday that it is not true he is willing “to meet Iran, ‘No Conditions’. That is an incorrect statement (as usual)”.
French President Emmanuel Macron has been holding frequent phone discussions with Rouhani about a possible deal to reduce tensions with the United States and reportedly to pave the way for a Trump-Rouhani meeting.
Mousavi also rejected as "nonsense" remarks by Republican U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham that it was time for the United States "to put on the table an attack on Iranian oil refineries" after the attacks on Saudi oil installations on Saturday that were claimed by Iran-aligned Houthis.
