TEHRAN, Aug. 20 (Xinhua) -- Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Wednesday that negotiating with the United States did not mean surrender.
At a conference in Tehran, Pezeshkian stressed the need to defend Iran's territorial integrity, according to a statement posted on his office's website.
"In the process of negotiations, we are moving forward step by step at the height of our power and while maintaining wisdom, dignity and expediency," Pezeshkian said.
"Our goals have been to end the war, lift the (anti-Iran naval) blockade, release the country's frozen assets and, then, (hold) nuclear talks," he noted.
U.S. President Donald Trump reportedly told top administration envoys to halt their conversations with Iran on Tuesday, local media reported, citing a U.S. official.
On Wednesday, Trump announced a "crushing economic operation" on Iran, hours after saying that the situation with Iran is "so good."
Tehran and Washington signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on ending the war on all fronts on June 18. Yet, it remains unclear how the talks will proceed after a 60-day negotiating period under the MoU ended on Monday and tensions between the two sides escalated last month. ■
