<p class="title">Iran on Wednesday rejected the possibility of a meeting between President Hassan Rouhani and US counterpart Donald Trump, after the White House signalled it was open to such an encounter.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Two of Trump's top lieutenants on Tuesday indicated he was ready to meet the Iranian president without preconditions, after the US leader sacked his hawkish national security adviser John Bolton.</p>.<p class="bodytext">But Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin stressed the United States would maintain its campaign of "maximum pressure" against the Islamic republic.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The idea of a Trump-Rouhani meeting was floated last month by French President Emmanuel Macron, who has been spearheading European efforts to de-escalate tensions between Iran and the United States.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The arch-foes have been at loggerheads since May last year when Trump unilaterally withdrew from a 2015 nuclear deal and began reimposing crippling sanctions on Iran.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Iran's representative at the United Nations reiterated Rouhani's position in an interview published Wednesday by state news agency IRNA.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Majid Takht-Ravanchi said a meeting could take place only if Washington ends its "economic terrorism" by lifting all of its sanctions against Tehran.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The Iranian envoy said any meeting must also be held in the framework of the group of major powers that negotiated the 2015 nuclear deal.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"As long as the US government's economic terrorism and such cruel sanctions are imposed on the Iranian people, there is no room for negotiations," he was quoted as saying by IRNA.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The diplomat said Trump's decision to dismiss Bolton -- a hardliner accused of pushing Trump towards war against Iran -- was a matter for the Americans.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"The removal of John Bolton is an internal affair and we don't take stands on domestic issues," said Takht-Ravanchi.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Asked about the impact of Bolton's sacking on long-fraught relations between Iran and the United States, he said it was "too soon" to make any judgements.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"Whether the extremist policy of the US changes or not depends on various factors in US foreign policy," he told ISNA.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Bolton is a controversial figure closely linked to the 2003 invasion of Iraq and other aggressive US foreign policy decisions.</p>.<p class="bodytext">He had been seen as one of the main driving forces in the White House's muscular approach to Iran, North Korea and Venezuela among others.</p>
<p class="title">Iran on Wednesday rejected the possibility of a meeting between President Hassan Rouhani and US counterpart Donald Trump, after the White House signalled it was open to such an encounter.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Two of Trump's top lieutenants on Tuesday indicated he was ready to meet the Iranian president without preconditions, after the US leader sacked his hawkish national security adviser John Bolton.</p>.<p class="bodytext">But Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin stressed the United States would maintain its campaign of "maximum pressure" against the Islamic republic.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The idea of a Trump-Rouhani meeting was floated last month by French President Emmanuel Macron, who has been spearheading European efforts to de-escalate tensions between Iran and the United States.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The arch-foes have been at loggerheads since May last year when Trump unilaterally withdrew from a 2015 nuclear deal and began reimposing crippling sanctions on Iran.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Iran's representative at the United Nations reiterated Rouhani's position in an interview published Wednesday by state news agency IRNA.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Majid Takht-Ravanchi said a meeting could take place only if Washington ends its "economic terrorism" by lifting all of its sanctions against Tehran.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The Iranian envoy said any meeting must also be held in the framework of the group of major powers that negotiated the 2015 nuclear deal.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"As long as the US government's economic terrorism and such cruel sanctions are imposed on the Iranian people, there is no room for negotiations," he was quoted as saying by IRNA.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The diplomat said Trump's decision to dismiss Bolton -- a hardliner accused of pushing Trump towards war against Iran -- was a matter for the Americans.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"The removal of John Bolton is an internal affair and we don't take stands on domestic issues," said Takht-Ravanchi.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Asked about the impact of Bolton's sacking on long-fraught relations between Iran and the United States, he said it was "too soon" to make any judgements.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"Whether the extremist policy of the US changes or not depends on various factors in US foreign policy," he told ISNA.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Bolton is a controversial figure closely linked to the 2003 invasion of Iraq and other aggressive US foreign policy decisions.</p>.<p class="bodytext">He had been seen as one of the main driving forces in the White House's muscular approach to Iran, North Korea and Venezuela among others.</p>