CNN —Iran’s President-elect Masoud Pezeshkian said he looks forward to improving ties with Europe, despite accusing the continent of backtracking on commitments to alleviate the impact of US sanctions. “Despite these missteps, I look forward to engaging in constructive dialogue with European countries to set our relations on the right path, based on principles of mutual respect and equal footing,” Pezeshkian wrote in the English-language Tehran Times newspaper. European countries made 11 commitments to Iran to “try to salvage the agreement and mitigate the impact of the United States’ unlawful and unilateral sanctions on our economy,” Pezeshikian said. Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, has the final say on all matters of state. Pezeshkian will ultimately defer to Khamenei, who has condemned those seeking improved relations with the West, on matters of foreign policy.

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