Iran president vows to 'firmly defend' country's positions at UN

France's President Emmanuel Macron and Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky on the sidelines of the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York City on September 21, 2026. [AFP]

Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian on Tuesday vowed to "firmly defend" his country's positions, as he departed for New York to attend the UN General Assembly.

"We emerged with our heads held high, and this is a source of dignity and pride for all of us. Therefore, we will firmly defend our positions in international forums," he said before flying out of Iran, according to footage broadcast by state television.

The president is due to speak at the UN meeting on Wednesday.

"We will make the best possible use of this opportunity to convey Iran's plight to the international community. We will firmly tell our adversaries that, despite all the unfairness and injustices, the Iranian people have stood their ground," he said.

Pezeshkian will be 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 strikes on Iran.

The United States has approved the UN visits for part of the Iranian delegation despite the war, but the group will be subject to movement restrictions, according to the US State Department.

The Iranian president's communications team have not been authorised to travel however, having been denied visas.

Their barring was described as "hostile" by Iranian presidential spokesman Habibollah Abbassi, according to local media.

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 one-fifth of the world's hydrocarbons passed before the war, has been severely disrupted, with Iran firing on commercial ships and demanding it approve passage.

In response, the United States is maintaining a counterblockade of Iranian ports while upping economic pressure on Iran.