Trump threatens Iran and its negotiators, and Ghalibaf responds news

The Iranian Tasnim news agency quoted a source close to the Iranian negotiating team as saying that the team left the site of direct talks with the Americans in the Bürgenstock resort in Switzerland in protest against the threats of US President Donald Trump, who said that Iranian negotiators “will not be able to return to their country” if Tehran closes the Strait of Hormuz.

Likewise, the official Iranian news agency reported that the Iranian delegation left the headquarters of the negotiations, while the American website Axios quoted a diplomatic source as saying that the Iranian delegation did not leave and that the talks – which began today, Sunday, are still continuing.

As for the American CNN network, it quoted an informed Iranian source as saying, “The talks faltered after Trump’s threat, but they have not collapsed yet.” He added, “Background communication channels are currently working to urge the parties to return to the negotiating table.”

For his part, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, who is participating in the direct talks, said, “It is better for the Americans to be cautious in their statements, as our forces are ready to respond to them in another way.”

Qalibaf stressed that the Iranians do not pay attention to American threats, and “if they were useful, they would not have reached the state of helplessness they are in.”

He added, “No matter how much the Americans talk, we are the ones who take action and implement it on the ground.”

Ghalibaf’s statements came after the end of the first round of talks, today, Sunday, which discussed following up on the implementation of the memorandum of understanding signed between Washington and Tehran before commencing negotiations on a final agreement.

Iranian television quoted a member of the negotiating delegation as saying that a temporary exemption from oil sanctions was discussed and a final draft in this regard was reached. The issue of frozen Iranian assets and arrangements for their release were also discussed.

The Iranian negotiator added that Tehran will not negotiate on other issues unless the war in Lebanon is ended.

Threats to Iran, its president, and its negotiators

Trump’s threats came with the start of the US-Iranian talks, as he said – in statements to Fox News on Sunday – that he spoke with Iranian officials yesterday and warned them against closing the Strait of Hormuz.

Trump said, “If the Iranians close the Strait of Hormuz, their country will be eliminated… and Iranian negotiators will not be able to return to their country,” without fully clarifying what he meant by that.

The American President hinted at controlling the Strait “if we have to,” indicating that the United States “may become the guardian angel of the Strait of Hormuz and take 20% of the oil.”

This comes after the Iranian Revolutionary Guard announced yesterday, Saturday, that it had closed the Strait of Hormuz to all ships in response to the continued Israeli attacks on Lebanon, which Tehran asserts violate the memorandum of understanding signed with Washington, stipulating an end to the war on all fronts.

In response to the Iranian president’s assertion that he would not abandon uranium enrichment, Trump said, “He better watch what he says, otherwise we will take over the rest of the country.”

The US President stressed that he maintains “multiple options if the Iranians do not make serious commitments at the negotiating table.” He added that the memorandum of understanding is “just an extension of the ceasefire,” and not a final agreement.

Regarding the situation in Lebanon, Trump said that he was close to “handing over the Hezbollah file to Syria and giving power to Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa.”

At the same time, he expressed his disappointment with Israel, saying that they “cannot do anything without demolishing buildings in Lebanon.”

In a post he later wrote on his platform, “Truth Social,” Trump said, “Iran must immediately prevent its agents in Lebanon from causing unrest, and if it does not do so, we will hit it hard again, as we did last week, and even harder.”