Iranian President Hassan Rouhani had rejected a request by his US counterpart Donald Trump for face-to-face talks on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly conference in New York last month, a senior Iranian analyst disclosed, reported Fars News Agency of Iran.

“US President Trump has invited President Rouhani to a face-to-face meeting during Mr. Rouhani's visit to New York to participate in the UN annual conference in September, but our president has turned down the offer,” Mahdi Faza’eli wrote on Sunday.

Later, the Iranian Foreign Ministry confirmed this information.

Faza’eli added that French President Emanuel Macron had also been trying to persuade Rouhani to accept the meeting, but failed.