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Iran Says No to U.S. Talks Amid Threats
(MENAFN) Iran has flatly rejected engaging in negotiations with Washington while under duress, as a fragile Pakistan-brokered ceasefire nears its Tuesday expiration and tensions over a U.S. naval blockade continue to escalate.
Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, a central figure in ongoing diplomatic efforts, publicly condemned U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday over his decision to impose a blockade on the Strait of Hormuz — a move Tehran insists breaches the terms of the precarious truce currently in effect.
Writing on X, the American social media platform, Ghalibaf accused Trump of attempting to twist the negotiations "into a table of surrender or to justify renewed warmongering." The senior official further warned that Tehran had readied new military contingencies should the two-week ceasefire — brokered by Pakistan — collapse before the week is out.
On Sunday, Trump announced that U.S. envoys would travel to Islamabad for a new round of talks, though Tehran has yet to formally confirm its attendance and has conditioned any participation on the immediate removal of the naval blockade.
The standoff deepens as Washington maintains its maritime chokehold on vessels entering and departing Iranian ports — a siege in place since last week that Tehran has repeatedly characterized as a direct violation of ceasefire commitments.
Trump sharpened his rhetoric further on Sunday, cautioning that U.S. forces would strike Iranian infrastructure if Tehran refused to comply with American terms for ending hostilities. The warning rattled global markets already on edge ahead of Tuesday evening's ceasefire deadline, Washington time.
Uncertainty surrounding the vital Strait of Hormuz deepened over the weekend after Iran reversed an earlier announcement. Having declared the waterway reopened to maritime traffic on Friday, Tehran reversed course by Saturday, reimposing restrictions on vessel passage through the strategically critical strait. State media attributed the reversal to the U.S. failing to honor its commitments.
The backdrop to this standoff is a landmark yet ultimately inconclusive diplomatic exchange. Pakistan hosted the first direct, high-level meeting between U.S. and Iranian officials in Islamabad on April 11–12 — the most significant bilateral contact since the two nations broke off diplomatic relations in 1979. Despite the historic nature of the encounter, the talks produced no tangible agreement.
Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, a central figure in ongoing diplomatic efforts, publicly condemned U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday over his decision to impose a blockade on the Strait of Hormuz — a move Tehran insists breaches the terms of the precarious truce currently in effect.
Writing on X, the American social media platform, Ghalibaf accused Trump of attempting to twist the negotiations "into a table of surrender or to justify renewed warmongering." The senior official further warned that Tehran had readied new military contingencies should the two-week ceasefire — brokered by Pakistan — collapse before the week is out.
On Sunday, Trump announced that U.S. envoys would travel to Islamabad for a new round of talks, though Tehran has yet to formally confirm its attendance and has conditioned any participation on the immediate removal of the naval blockade.
The standoff deepens as Washington maintains its maritime chokehold on vessels entering and departing Iranian ports — a siege in place since last week that Tehran has repeatedly characterized as a direct violation of ceasefire commitments.
Trump sharpened his rhetoric further on Sunday, cautioning that U.S. forces would strike Iranian infrastructure if Tehran refused to comply with American terms for ending hostilities. The warning rattled global markets already on edge ahead of Tuesday evening's ceasefire deadline, Washington time.
Uncertainty surrounding the vital Strait of Hormuz deepened over the weekend after Iran reversed an earlier announcement. Having declared the waterway reopened to maritime traffic on Friday, Tehran reversed course by Saturday, reimposing restrictions on vessel passage through the strategically critical strait. State media attributed the reversal to the U.S. failing to honor its commitments.
The backdrop to this standoff is a landmark yet ultimately inconclusive diplomatic exchange. Pakistan hosted the first direct, high-level meeting between U.S. and Iranian officials in Islamabad on April 11–12 — the most significant bilateral contact since the two nations broke off diplomatic relations in 1979. Despite the historic nature of the encounter, the talks produced no tangible agreement.
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