[Herald Economy=Reporter Ahn Hyo-jung] Iranian authorities have officially denied reports that Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, who leads Iran’s negotiating team with the United States, resigned.On the 24th (local time), ICANA quoted Aman Shamsai, head of the Parliament’s Center for Foreign Cooperation, Media and Cultural Affairs, as saying, “Reports that Ghalibaf resigned as head of the Iranian negotiating team are fake news.”
This is the first time Iranian officials have formally rejected such resignation reports. Shamsai said the rumors appear intended to sow confusion among the Iranian public and stressed that “Ghalibaf continues to carry out his duties.”
Earlier, on the 23rd, Israel’s Channel 12 reported that Ghalibaf had resigned, alleging that hardline elements within the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps who oppose talks with the U.S. interfered with the negotiations.
The rumors have been cited as evidence of a rift between Iran’s negotiation faction and hardline military figures within the leadership, and they have spread through social media accounts suspected of links to Israeli intelligence.
