Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian has said his country is not seeking nuclear weapons but will continue to defend its “legitimate rights” in the peaceful use of nuclear energy, AFP reports.

As a fragile ceasefire with Israel took hold after 12 days of fighting that also included US strikes, Pezeshkian told his counterpart from the United Arab Emirates that the two countries “cannot impose unjust aspirations by force”.

“We expect you to explain to them, in your dealings with the United States, that the Islamic Republic of Iran is only seeking to assert its legitimate rights,” Pezeshkian said during a call with UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed.

“It has never sought to acquire nuclear weapons and does not seek them,” he was quoted as saying by the official IRNA news agency, adding that Iran was “ready to resolve the issues … at the negotiating table”.