The speaker of Iran’s parliament, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, has denied holding any negotiations with the United States, rejecting a claim made by President Donald Trump.
In an interview with the New York Post published on Monday, Trump said the U.S. was in talks with Ghalibaf, a former commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard.
However, Ghalibaf denied any direct contact in a message posted on the social media platform X. His statement was echoed by a spokesperson for Iran’s foreign ministry, Esmaeil Baqaei.
Baqaei said no negotiations had taken place, although he confirmed that intermediaries had delivered a set of proposals to Iran.
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He added that Tehran “will not forget the betrayal inflicted on diplomacy on two occasions in less than a year,” referring to indirect talks in June 2025 and February 2026 that preceded attacks by Israel and the United States.
Ghalibaf also claimed that indirect talks initiated by Washington, mediated by Pakistan, were merely a cover for deploying U.S. troops.
“The United States is promoting wishes as news while at the same time threatening our nation,” he said.
A U.S. amphibious assault ship, leading a naval group of around 3,500 sailors and marines, arrived in the region on Friday.
“The enemy is sending public messages of negotiation and dialogue while secretly planning a ground offensive,” Ghalibaf warned on Sunday, adding that Iranian forces are prepared to respond.
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Meanwhile, Trump reiterated on Truth Social that the U.S. is engaged in “serious talks with a new and more reasonable regime” in Iran, while also threatening strikes on the country’s energy infrastructure if no agreement is reached soon.
Also on Monday, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said there are internal divisions within Iran’s leadership. Speaking to ABC News, he noted differences between public and private positions of Iranian interlocutors but declined to provide details for security reasons.
Rubio suggested that some figures in Tehran may be willing to steer the country in a different direction, which he described as a potentially positive development.
