Iran’s parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf accused Trump of pressuring Tehran through a “siege” and ceasefire violations, describing US efforts as turning the negotiating table “into a table of surrender.”
In a post on X, Ghalibaf said: “We do not accept negotiations under the shadow of threats,” adding that Iran had spent the past two weeks preparing to “reveal new cards on the battlefield.”
ترامپ با اعمال محاصره و نقض آتشبس میخواهد تا به خیال خود این میز مذاکره را به میز تسلیم تبدیل کند یا جنگافروزی مجدد را موجّه سازد. مذاکره زیر سایهٔ تهدید را نمیپذیریم و در دو هفتهٔ اخیر برای رو کردن کارتهای جدید در میدان نبرد آماده شدهایم.
— محمدباقر قالیباف | MB Ghalibaf (@mb_ghalibaf) April 20, 2026
On the other side Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said Tehran will closely watch US actions before deciding its next steps, stressing that any move will be guided by national interests and security.
According to Iranian state media, Araghchi made the remarks during talks with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov, as tensions with Washington remain high.
He said Iran would “monitor US behavior and take the appropriate decision to protect its interests and national security.”
The comments come amid ongoing friction over US military actions and stalled negotiations, with Tehran repeatedly warning it will respond to any escalation.
Earlier on Monday, President Masoud Pezeshkian dismissed US threats as pressure tactics, stating that Iran will not yield to coercion, even as Washington continued issuing both military and diplomatic ultimatums. The spokesperson for the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters also denounced the US Navy’s actions as a criminal operation, saying it breached the ceasefire and amounted to maritime piracy by opening fire on an Iranian merchant vessel in the Sea of Oman.
US President Donald Trump has warned Iran that it must negotiate or face unprecedented problems, stressing that Tehran will not be allowed to develop nuclear weapons.
In a phone interview on the conservative radio programme The John Fredericks Show, Trump said: “Well, they’re going to negotiate, and if they don’t, they’re going to see problems like they’ve never seen before.”
He added: “Hopefully they’ll make a fair deal and they’ll build their country back up, but when they do it they will not have a nuclear weapon. They’ll have no access to, no chance of having a nuclear weapon. And we can’t allow that to happen. That could be the destruction of the world, and we’re not going to let that happen.”
Speaking to Bloomberg in a phone interview, he noted that the truce previously due to expire on April 21 at 8pm ET would last until midweek, but added it was “highly unlikely that I’d extend it” further if no agreement is reached before the new deadline.
Meanwhile, US Vice President JD Vance is scheduled to travel to Pakistan on Tuesday for talks on Iran, according to Axios citing US sources.
BREAKING: Vance to travel to Pakistan on Tuesday for Iran talks
🔴 LIVE updates: https://t.co/amexjlqcSd pic.twitter.com/m2tSFswIlu— Al Jazeera Breaking News (@AJENews) April 21, 2026
