"Israel, equipped with nuclear weapons, constitutes the greatest threat to peace and stability in the region and in the world," Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said Tuesday while addressing the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
"Israel, which has a nuclear arsenal and is blatantly threatening others with nuclear annihilation, is the most terrifying threat to the peace and stability of the region and the world," Rouhani said.
The Iranian president also condemned the United States trying to overthrow his government and its support for Israel.
"The countless crimes by Israel against the Palestinians would not have been able to take place without assistance and support from the U.S.," Rouhani added.
In his General Assembly speech, the Iranian president also targeted U.S. President Donald Trump although if not directly name him.
"The United States' understanding of international relations is authoritarian," he said. "In its estimation, might makes right."
Rouhani condemned "recklessness and disregard of some states for international values and institutions." He laid into leaders who believe they can "ride public sentiments and gain popular support through the fomenting of extremist nationalism and racism" and through what he called "xenophobic tendencies resembling a Nazi disposition."
He said the United States had waged "economic war" against Iran by re-imposing unilateral sanctions, which were lifted under the country's 2015 multinational nuclear deal in return for Tehran curbing its nuclear program.
"The United States policy vis-à-vis the Islamic Republic of Iran has been wrong from the beginning, and its approach of resisting the wishes of the Iranian people as manifested in numerous elections is doomed to failure," Rouhani said.
Trump pulled the United States out of the pact in May, and his administration re-imposed sanctions on Iran in August. Harsher sanctions on Iran's oil and banking sector are expected in November.
"The economic war that the United States has initiated under the rubric of new sanctions not only targets the Iranian people but also entails harmful repercussions for the people of other countries, and that war has caused a disruption in the state of global trade," Rouhani said.
"What Iran says is clear: no war, no sanctions, no threats, no bullying; just acting according to the law and the fulfillment of obligations."
Mounting pressure from the Trump administration combined with discontent among many Iranians over the state of the economy are rattling the Islamic Republic, with little sign that its leaders have the answers, officials and analysts say.
The rial has lost 40% of its value against the U.S. dollar since April.
To pile on the pain, Washington says all countries must end crude imports from Iran by Nov. 4, hitting the oil sales that generate 60% of the country's income. Iran says this level of cuts will never happen.
Tehran has suggested it could take military action in the Gulf to block other countries' oil exports in retaliation for U.S. sanctions intended to halt its sales of crude. Washington maintains a fleet in the Gulf that protects oil shipping routes.
"The security of the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz has always been important for us. ... We will confront any and all disruptive efforts in this critical waterway in the future," said Rouhani.
The Strait of Hormuz is a strategic artery linking Middle East crude producers to key markets in the Asia-Pacific, Europe, North America and beyond. A third of the world's seaborne oil passes through the strait in southern Iran.
Trump, in his annual U.N. speech, said he would keep up economic pressure on Tehran to try to force a change in its behavior. But Rouhani said Iran had no intention of succumbing to the U.S. pressure.
"No state and nation can be brought to the negotiating table by force," Rouhani continued. "Our proposal is clear: commitment for commitment; violation for violation; threat for threat; and step for step, instead of talk for talk."
Rouhani expressed Iran's willingness to improve ties with the countries in its region. Sunni Muslim Saudi Arabia has been at loggerheads with Shiite Iran for decades, fighting a long-running proxy war in the Middle East and beyond that has influenced conflicts in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and Yemen.
Riyadh and its Gulf allies have hailed Trump's decision to exit the nuclear deal and to re-impose sanctions on Tehran, reflecting their concern about Iran's influence in the region.
"We believe in the formation of a collective mechanism for the Persian Gulf region with the presence and participation of all regional countries," Rouhani said.
In remarks released while Rouhani was still talking, U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton doubled down on the decision to withdraw from the deal, calling it "the worst diplomatic debacle in American history." He echoed Trump's strong language and used blunt words to dismiss any entreaties from Tehran.
"According to the mullahs in Tehran, we are 'the Great Satan,' lord of the underworld, master of the raging inferno," Bolton said in remarks prepared for delivery at a New York meeting convened to oppose Iran's nuclear ambitions.
"So, I might imagine they would take me seriously when I assure them today: If you cross us, our allies, or our partners; if you harm our citizens; if you continue to lie, cheat, and deceive, yes, there will indeed be HELL to PAY," Bolton said.
The capitalizations were included in the text of the quotes released to journalists.
Trump, in his own speech, said Americans "reject the ideology of globalism" in favor of what he called "the doctrine of patriotism." He also blasted what he called Iran's "corrupt dictatorship" and said its leaders "sow chaos, death and destruction" and "spread mayhem across the Middle East and far beyond."
The Iranian president took a dig at Trump's opposition to nations working together, adding a personal twist.
"Confronting multilateralism is not a sign of strength. Rather, it is a symptom of the weakness of intellect. It betrays an inability in understanding a complex and interconnected world," Rouhani said.
The Iranian president said his country will remain a link between East and West, noting that it fought Iraq's ruling party before Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait in 1990, battled the Taliban and al-Qaida before 9/11 and was opposing the Islamic State extremist group before its attacks in Europe.
"Appreciate these historical realities about Iran," Rouhani told leaders at the end of his speech. "Quit imposing sanctions and end extremism. The world will not have a better friend than Iran, if peace is what you seek."
