Ghalibaf's Decisive Response to Trump's Claims; "Our Only Harvest from America is Mistrust"

Following the escalation of verbal tensions between Tehran and Washington, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Speaker of the Islamic Consultative Assembly of Iran, reacted to recent statements by US President Donald Trump. Trump had claimed that under new agreements, Iran committed to spending a portion of its unfrozen assets on purchasing agricultural products, including corn, wheat, and soybeans, from American farmers [1][3].

Denial of Agricultural Purchase Claims Ghalibaf strongly rejected these claims on his personal account on the X social network (formerly Twitter), calling them "fabrications." In a sarcastic message, he wrote: "America falsely claims that our unfrozen assets will be spent on purchasing their agricultural products. Remarkable! The only product we harvest is exactly what you planted years ago: decades of mistrust!" [2]. The Iranian Speaker added that this harvest (mistrust) is completely organic, abundant, and indigenous, while the US only exports "GMO soybeans, unfulfilled promises, and worthless words" [1][4].

Details of the June 2026 Agreement and Unfrozen Assets This verbal clash occurs as reports indicate a memorandum of understanding was reached between the two countries on June 14, 2026. According to Article 11 of this agreement, Iran's frozen assets must be released and placed at the disposal of the Central Bank of Iran to be spent on purchases determined by Tehran [3]. However, Donald Trump claimed that Washington maintains full control over these funds and forced Iran to buy from the US market; a claim that Iranian officials say contradicts the text of the memorandum [1][5].

Tension in the Strait of Hormuz and Media Warfare In addition to the assets issue, Ghalibaf responded to Trump's other claims regarding maritime security. Trump had previously claimed that Iran committed to not collecting any tolls or fees from ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz [5]. Rejecting this, Ghalibaf emphasized that "the opening or closing of the Strait of Hormuz and the regulations governing it are determined by the field, not social networks" [4]. He described such statements as part of "public opinion engineering" for US domestic consumption and to influence financial markets and oil prices [3].

Analysis of Diplomatic Dimensions Experts believe that Ghalibaf's sharp reaction indicates a deadlock in key parts of the technical negotiations currently underway in Switzerland. While Trump attempts to strengthen his position against domestic critics by showing "major concessions from Iran," Tehran emphasizes maintaining sovereignty over its assets and independence in economic decision-making [5]. Ghalibaf warned that with the continuation of media pressure and fabrications, the path of negotiations will not reach a desirable result [2][4].