Iran's President Hassan Rouhani said on Sunday that he would present to the United Nations with a regional cooperation plan for safeguarding peace in the Gulf at the annual UN General Assembly gathering next week.
He made the remarks in a televised speech at the annual military parade commemorating anniversary of the beginning of the 1980-1988 war with Iraq.
"Foreign forces can cause problems and insecurity for our people and for our region," Rouhani said, after the U.S. ordered the deployment of more troops to the region.
Iran will not allow anyone to violate its borders, he added.
The parade came at a time of heightened tension with the U.S. and Saudi Arabia.
Members of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) stand in formation during the annual 'Sacred Defence Week' military parade in Tehran, Iran, September 22, 2019. /VCG Photo
U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday approved sending American troops to bolster Saudi Arabia's air and missile defenses after attacks on Saudi oil sites on September 14.
Both Riyadh and the U.S. blamed Tehran.
Iran has denies involvement in the attack, which was claimed by Yemen's Houthi movement, a group aligned with Iran and currently fighting a Saudi-led alliance in Yemen's civil war.
Rouhani is expected to travel to New York on Monday, a day before the general debate kicks off at the UNGA.
Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who is subject to U.S. sanctions, has already arrived in New York ahead of the annual gathering.
President Hassan Rouhani (C) arrives with Iranian military officials for the annual 'Sacred Defence Week' military parade in Tehran, Iran, September 22, 2019. /VCG Photo
'Stay away'
In his speech delivered before a massive military parade on Sunday, Rouhani called on the foreign powers in the Gulf region to "stay away."
"If they're sincere, then they should not make our region the site of an arms race," he said.
"Your presence has always brought pain and misery for the region. The farther you keep yourselves from our region and our nations, the more security there will be for our region."
President Hassan Rouhani (C) gives a speech during the annual 'Sacred Defence Week' military parade in Tehran, Iran, September 22, 2019. /VCG Photo
"We are even ready to ignore their past mistakes... since today the situation is such that the enemies of Islam and the region, meaning America and Zionism, want to abuse the rift between us.
"Our logic is the logic of a Persian Gulf whose security comes from within," said the Iranian president.
(Cover: Iranian President Hassan Rouhani speaks at an annual parade marking the anniversary of the war with Iraq in Tehran, Iran, September 22, 2019. /CCTV Photo)
(With input from Reuters, AFP)