"I’ll be assassinated if I go to talks"… Iran wary of U.S. ceasefire proposal

U.S. President Donald Trump is seeking to pursue ceasefire talks with Iran, but concerns have emerged in Iran that the initiative could be a trap aimed at assassination.

On the 24th (local time), The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), citing Iranian officials and Arab figures, reported that Iran is worried the United States may be using ceasefire negotiations as bait while plotting to assassinate senior Iranian leaders.

In particular, the assessment is that Iranian media are weighing the possibility that this could be a trap to kill Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the speaker of Iran’s parliament, whom U.S. outlets have identified as the Iranian representative the Trump administration wants to deal with.

Ghalibaf, who has served as speaker since 2020, is a conservative politician who has held a range of key posts, including commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Air Force, mayor of Tehran, and national police chief. He also survived while the United States and Israel killed many members of Iran’s leadership, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Iranian officials also view Trump’s announcement that attacks on power plants and energy infrastructure would be deferred for five days as merely an attempt to push down oil prices ahead of a resumption of strikes.

Trump said on the 23rd that “the United States and Iran had excellent and productive talks about ways to resolve hostilities,” but Iran has denied this, saying there were no negotiations or dialogue with the United States.

Meanwhile, Türkiye, Egypt and Pakistan are acting as mediators to pursue ceasefire talks between the United States and Iran on the 26th, but the gap between the two sides’ positions is said to be wide.

Oh Se-sung, Hankyung.com reporter sesung@hankyung.com