President Rouhani argued that "despite the unilateral sanctions of the U.S. against the Islamic Republic of Iran, it is the first time after the revolution that their sanctions have only a few proponents in the world, and the overwhelming majority of countries are against them". He added that "eight times in my visit to New York in 2017, and five world leaders in 2018, delivered Trump's message for a meeting, but I announced that the time and conditions weren't ripe for a meeting. I said it there that first the U.S. should return back to the nuclear deal and compensate its withdrawal... we favour negotiation and have its power".