Iran’s Qalibaf: Recent tensions caused by ceasefire violations, naval blockade

Iranian Parliament Speaker and chief nuclear negotiator Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf said on Tuesday that the recent spike in tensions between Iran and Israel was caused by violations of the ceasefire and the US naval blockade of Iranian ports. In a message addressed to the Iranian people on social media, Qalibaf stated that Tehran had previously stopped Israeli attacks on Lebanon by threatening to cut off negotiations and retaliate. This time, he said, Iran responded with direct strikes on Israel. “The reason for the recent tensions was the violation of the ceasefire and the naval blockade,” Qalibaf said.

Military and diplomatic readiness

Qalibaf argued that if Iran had not achieved military victories and diplomatic progress, it would have been helpless regarding Lebanon and the naval blockade. He emphasized that Iran’s armed forces remain fully prepared to respond to any threat. “Neither does diplomacy hinder military action, nor does military action hinder diplomacy,” he said. “The goal of negotiations is to end the war and achieve lasting security, not normalization with the US.” His remarks came after a weekend of tit-for-tat airstrikes between Iran and Israel, triggered by an Israeli bombing of Beirut.