Key facts
- Iran's IRGC has denied claims by President Donald Trump of backchannel talks with the US.
- IRGC spokesperson Brigadier General Hossein Mohammadi called Trump's claims "fantasies" and "delusions."
- Mohammadi cited broken promises and US violations of agreements as reasons for no current talks.
- Iran's Foreign Ministry also denied reports of unofficial contacts.
- Iran stated the Strait of Hormuz will remain closed until the US changes its behavior and accepts Iran's conditions.
- US forces attacked a cargo ship in the Gulf of Oman for allegedly violating a blockade.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has vehemently denied claims made by US President Donald Trump that backchannel talks are occurring between the two sides. IRGC spokesperson Brigadier General Hossein Mohammadi stated that such assertions are merely "fantasies" born from "defeat and desperation in the war."
Mohammadi told the state-run Tasnim news agency that "no talks are taking place with the Americans in this area either," attributing the lack of dialogue to "broken promises and the dark experiences of repeated and constant violations of agreements by the United States." He added that diplomatic matters are handled by other institutions within the Islamic Republic.
Separately, Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei also dismissed reports of unofficial contacts between Washington and the IRGC, particularly those allegedly occurring through officials in Iraq’s Kurdistan region. Baghaei characterized such reports as "media techniques and psychological operations" designed to sow division within Iran's decision-making bodies.
Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, asserted that the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway for global energy shipments, will remain closed until the US alters its behavior and accepts Iran's conditions. He also demanded an end to the US naval blockade on Iranian ports and a region-wide ceasefire.
The situation remains tense, with US forces reportedly firing missiles at a cargo ship in the Gulf of Oman for allegedly attempting to breach a US blockade of Iranian ports. Concurrently, six people were reported killed in a Houthi attack on a Saudi cargo vessel in the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, highlighting ongoing maritime security concerns in the region.