TEHRAN -- Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei said on Thursday that despite having a different opinion, he issued the permission for signing a peace memorandum of understanding (MoU) between Tehran and Washington.
He made the remarks in a message addressed to Iran's people, which was carried by Iranian media, hours after Pezeshkian and his US counterpart, Donald Trump, signed the MoU on ending the war.
Khamenei said the relevant Iranian officials made considerable efforts "out of compassion and goodwill" on the path to reach this stage, adding, "Of course, it was the US president who used all kinds of levers for this purpose."
He stressed, "In principle, I had a different opinion, but I issued the permission owing to the commitment that the esteemed (Iranian) president, as the chairman of the Supreme National Security Council (SNSC), gave me on behalf of himself and other members to protect the rights of the Iranian nation and the resistance front, and after he stated that he would accept the responsibility for it."
Khamenei added that Pezeshkian and other SNSC members had also stated that if the United States seeks to put forward "excessive demands," they would not accept them.
