'Fake news to manipulate financial, oil markets': Iran's Speaker rejects Trump's negotiation claims
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has rejected President Donald Trump's claims about negotiations between Tehran and Washington, and said that people of Iran want "complete and remorseful punishment" of the aggressors.
Denying US President Donald Trump's claims that Washington and Tehran held 'very good' and 'positive' talks in the past two days, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on Monday that fake news is being spread to manipulate oil and financial market. He said this was being done to "escape the quagmire" in which the United States and Israel are trapped now.
In a series of posts on X (which was previously called Twitter), Ghalibaf said the people of Iran want "complete and remorseful punishment" of the aggressors. He said Iran's officials stand firmly with new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei and the people until the goals are achieved.
"No negotiations have been held with the US, and fake news is used to manipulate the financial and oil markets and escape the quagmire in which the US and Israel are trapped," he said.
Ghalibaf's X post comes after Trump said that he has directed US military not to strike Iran's power plants and energy infrastructure for the next five days after two days of productive talks. In a post on Truth Social which was completely written in capital letters, the American president said the talks focused on "complete and total" resolution on the hostilities in the Middle East.
But soon after this, Iranian media quoted official saying that no such talks have been held. Iran's Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Esmail Baghaei also denied the talks, further stating that the country's position regarding the Strait of Hormuz and the conditions for ending the war remains unchanged.
However, Trump maintained that he has held talks with Iranian leadership. But speaking to reporters at the Palm Beach International Airport in Florida later in the day, the 79-year-old president said that the US was not holding talks with Mojtaba Khamenei, adding that the American military has wiped out the Iranian leadership.
"A top person... We are dealing with a man who I believe is the most respected and the leader," Trump said. "We have not heard from the son... Every once in a while you will see a statement made (from Khamenei) but we don't know if he's living."
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