Iran’s new reformist president is insisting that Tehran didn’t want to enrich uranium at near-weapons grade levels but had been forced by the U.S. withdrawal from its nuclear deal with world powers.

Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Monday that his government had not transferred any weapons to Russia since it took office in August, after Western powers accused Tehran of delivering ballistic missiles to Moscow in September.

(240916) -- TEHRAN, Sept. 16, 2024 (Xinhua) -- Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian attends a press conference in Tehran, Iran, on Sept. 16, 2024. Pezeshkian asserted on Monday that his country has no intention of developing nuclear weapons, pushing back against international concerns over its uranium enrichment program. (Xinhua/Shadati)

Russia's top security official Sergei Shoigu traveled to Iran less than a week after he met with North Korea's Kim Jong Un amid U.S. concerns that Russia is expanding its nuclear ties with adversaries.