The United Nations Development Program warned that the war, which is also causing fertilizer prices to rise, could push more than 30 million people into poverty in 160 countries.
“This is reverse development,” UNDP chief Alexander De Croo told AFP.
Despite the cleric-run state’s defiance, the Iranian rial fell to historic lows against the dollar.
Tehran residents speaking to AFP journalists in Paris expressed a sense of despair.
“Whenever there have been talks in recent years, people’s economic situation has only worsened. Sanctions have either started or intensified,” a 52-year-old architect told AFP on condition of anonymity.
He said, “The issue is always nuclear. There is no talk about people, economy or freedom. People have the right not to even hear the word ‘negotiation’.”