India, April 2 -- Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian on Wednesday released an open letter addressed to the American people, calling for a shift away from conflict and suggesting the possibility of diplomatic engagement.

The letter came just hours before Donald Trump was set to address the nation with what he described as an "important update" on the Iran war. Earlier in the day, Trump had claimed on social media that Iran was seeking a cease-fire, a statement that Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei called "false and baseless."

Pezeshkian addressed his letter not to the American government but to the American people. But he did not address Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz which has caused significant disruption to th...