Iran’s Parliament Speaker, Mohammad Bagher Kalibaf, stated that the U.S. administration aims to disarm Iran under the guise of negotiations. Speaking at an open session of the Iranian Parliament, Kalibaf referred to U.S. President Donald Trump’s call for negotiations with Iran. Although mentioning a letter he claimed Trump had written to Iran’s leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, which Iran has yet to receive, he said, “We are not expecting any letter from the U.S., and we believe that lifting sanctions is possible by empowering Iran and rendering the sanctions ineffective.” Kalibaf also commented on Trump’s plan for negotiations with Iran, saying, “The behaviors of the U.S. President towards other countries reveal that these statements are part of a deception aimed at disarming Iran.” TRUMP’S CALL FOR NEGOTIATIONS WITH IRAN In an interview with Fox Business Network, Trump had revealed that he sent a letter to Iran’s leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, stating, “I wrote them a letter saying, ‘I hope you’d negotiate because if we have to go in militarily, it’s going to be a horrible thing’.” Iran’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations (UN) in New York responded to Trump’s statement about sending a letter to Khamenei by saying, “So far, we have not received such a letter.” Subsequently, a U.S. official speaking to country’s media confirmed, “Trump wrote the letter but has not yet sent it.” Leader Khamenei had labeled the Trump administration as “unreliable” and banned negotiations with them, stating that U.S. officials including President Hassan Rouhani and Foreign Minister Javad Zarif had emphasized that Iran will not negotiate under pressure or threats from the U.S. Finally, in a speech yesterday, Khamenei had expressed that the U.S.’ negotiation request aimed at imposing its own demands and establishing dominance rather than resolving issues, stating that Iran will not accept this.