Iranian President Says Iran ‘Cannot Continue With War Forever’

Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian attends a press conference in the capital Tehran, on August 8, 2026.Iranian Presidential Office/AFP/Getty Images

RIYADH, August 23 (Saudi Arabia Breaking News) — Iran “cannot continue with war forever,” President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Sunday while defending the memorandum reached with the United States in June.

“One day, a decision must be made to save the country from the state of ‘neither war nor peace’,” Pezeshkian said during one of two appearances in Tehran.

The Iranian president said everyone directly involved in the negotiations had considered the memorandum the best available path. The agreement collapsed last month.

“By implementing this memorandum, we can resolve the problems with logic and dignity,” he said, in remarks reported by state news agency IRNA.

Pezeshkian has repeatedly warned about the conflict’s economic and social consequences, placing his position at odds with harder-line figures within Iran’s leadership.

“We must stand with the people. If we cannot serve them and convince them that we all belong to the same land and country, then even if we possess the greatest military power, we will be defeated,” he said Sunday.

Pezeshkian said the government was using all its resources to “steer inflation, public problems, people’s livelihoods, people’s jobs, people’s future, and people’s lives towards dignity and pride.”

Ayatollah Seyyed Hassan Khomeini, grandson of Islamic Republic founder Ruhollah Khomeini, joined Pezeshkian during one of the appearances.

“Sometimes, a wise compromise can achieve more than hundreds of wars,” Khomeini said.

CNN reported that Pezeshkian defended the memorandum despite purported misgivings from Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei. No public statement from the supreme leader concerning the memorandum was included in the report.

Commentators cited by CNN described an intensifying debate within Iran’s leadership. Some favor negotiations before the economic crisis worsens, while harder-line figures in the military and security establishment continue to reject dialogue with Washington.

Source: CNN