TEHRAN – President Masoud Pezeshkian has declared that the Islamic Republic will not bow to any bully, stressing that recent U.S.-Israeli aggression has only strengthened national unity rather than undermining the Islamic Republic.

Pezeshkian made the remarks during meetings with his Georgian counterpart Mikheil Kavelashvili and Turkish Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz on the sidelines of the farewell ceremony for martyred Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei. 

“Enemies thought that by targeting the Leader of the Islamic Revolution and creating widespread pressure, the Islamic Republic of Iran would falter and collapse, but the result was nothing more than increasing the cohesion, solidarity, and national unity of the Iranian nation,” Pezeshkian said.

He noted that the country’s armed forces “powerfully” defended Iran’s security and territorial integrity, while the government maintained the provision of services and administration of the country throughout the crisis.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran will not bow to any bully,” Pezeshkian stated. “They want to subjugate the nations, but our nation will not submit to force.”

Slamming Israel’s destabilizing actions in the region, Pezeshkian emphasized that Iran has always sought to expand friendly relations with neighboring countries, adding that Georgia occupies an important place in this approach.

Kavelashvili expressed the sincere condolences of the Georgian government and people on the martyrdom of Ayatollah Khamenei and many Iranian citizens, saying Georgia “followed this loss with deep sorrow and stood by the Iranian nation in these difficult days.”

The Georgian president called for strengthening mutual cooperation, stating that Iran and Georgia have “ancient and deep-rooted civilizations” that can serve as a “valuable basis for deepening relations and charting new horizons of cooperation.”

In his meeting with Yilmaz, 

Pezeshkian referred to Israel’s destructive role in the region, stating that the regime has played a direct role in numerous regional crises over the past decades “yet simultaneously attempts to portray others as the source of insecurity.”
“The primary objective of this approach is to stoke discord among Islamic nations and undermine the capabilities of the Islamic world in order to advance its own illegitimate interests,” Pezeshkian said.
He emphasized that greater cohesion and cooperation among Muslim countries would diminish the potential for interference by destructive actors in the region.
Yilmaz conveyed a message of condolence from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and noted that ties between Tehran and Ankara have consequences for the region.
“The stronger and closer the relations between Iran and Turkey, the more the scope for extra-regional interference and the creation of rifts among regional countries will diminish,” Yilmaz said. 
“Regional security and stability hinge on cooperation, dialogue, and mutual trust among the countries of the region.”
He requested that Pezeshkian convey Erdogan’s greetings and condolences to the new Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Khamenei.