Amid a sharp escalation in West Asia hostilities, Iranian Parliament Speaker and top negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf issued a fierce rhetorical pushback against Washington. In a statement published on X, Ghalibaf accused the United States of “major violations” regarding the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), a tenuous ceasefire agreement aimed at managing regional friction.
Ghalibaf’s public reprimand comes directly on the heels of extensive military action. US Central Command (CENTCOM) confirmed conducting sweeping retaliatory airstrikes hitting over 80 targets inside Iran, including air defense systems, coastal radars, and dozens of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) small vessels. The Pentagon framed these operations as an immediate response to recent Iranian attacks on commercial shipping in the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
In his post, Ghalibaf outlined five specific grievances, condemning what he termed “attacks on southern Iran,” “persistent threats of further strikes,” the reinstatement of crippling oil sanctions, and US interference with Iranian maritime operations in the Strait. He additionally tied the breakdown of the MoU to broader geopolitical dynamics, listing “continued Zionist aggression” against Lebanon as a primary breach.
The core of Ghalibaf’s message, however, lay in its concluding, uncompromising tone: “The era of bullying and extortion is over. It leads nowhere. We don’t fold.”
This defiant stance underscores a deepening diplomatic impasse. While Washington maintains its actions are necessary countermeasures to protect vital international commerce and deter maritime aggression, Tehran views the strikes and renewed economic sanctions as a bad-faith unravelling of mutual understandings. As both nations trade military blows and diplomatic recriminations, Ghalibaf’s remarks signal that Iran has no intention of backing down, raising serious concerns over the survival of the fragile diplomatic framework.( _WION_)
