Iran pledges economic reforms, calls for dialogue with protesters

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Monday that the government is prioritizing economic reforms as well as dialogue with protesters, emphasizing that the livelihood of ordinary citizens remains his daily concern.

"The livelihood of the people is my daily concern. We have fundamental actions on the agenda to reform the monetary and banking system and preserve the purchasing power of the people.

"I have tasked the Minister of the Interior to hear the legitimate demands of the protesters through dialogue with their representatives, so that the government can act with all its might to resolve problems and respond responsibly," Pezeshkian said on the US social media company X's platform.

His remarks came after Iran's biggest demonstrations in three years broke out on Monday following a sharp plunge in the national currency the rial to a record low against the US dollar and the resignation of Iran's Central Bank governor Mohammad Reza Farzin after protests erupted in Tehran and other cities.

Iran's economy has been struggling with major challenges, including soaring inflation, the collapse of the rial, near-stagnant GDP growth and capital flight, driven by US sanctions.