ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Thursday said he recently held a two-hour “prevailing” meeting with Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, marking their first official meeting since the outbreak of the Iran war and the supreme leader’s election. 

The newly elected supreme leader has not made any public appearances since his election, with only written statements and letters published under his name.

Pezeshkian described “the manner of engagement, the type of outlook, and the humble and deeply sincere approach of the Supreme Leader” as the most outstanding part of his visit to Khamenei, Iranian state broadcaster IRIB reported.

Praising the country’s leadership, Pezeshkian further described Khamenei as “engaging with officials and individuals with moral character and humility.” 

He noted that the supreme leaders’ characteristics “transformed the dialogue into an environment built on trust, calm, empathy, and direct, unmediated conversation."

The Iranian president’s remarks marked the first time an official has publicly said he met with the leader since the outbreak of the war in February. 

Myriad top Iranian officials, including the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, were killed during the US-Israeli military campaign that commenced in late February, disrupting the balance of power in the Islamic republic and positioning Khamenei's son, Mojtaba, as the new supreme leader.

However, the new supreme leader has yet to make a public appearance since his father's death, giving rise to speculation that he was severely wounded in the same strike and raising doubts regarding his effective control over the country's affairs.

US President Donald Trump has repeatedly expressed confusion over Iran’s power structure, saying in April that “Iran is having a very hard time figuring out who their leader is,” while claiming there was an internal struggle between “hardliners” and “moderates.”

On April 1, Trump said that the US was talking to Iran's "new regime president" regarding the prospect of a ceasefire, which was later realized. No clarification was even given as to whom the US president was referring.