Leak Claims Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Thinks It Has the Upper Hand in U.S. Talks

After the first round of negotiations between the United States and Iran ended on Tuesday, Channel 14 says it obtained dramatic private remarks from senior figures in Iran’s Revolutionary Guard that paint a far more alarming picture than the one being presented by the American side. The report says those officials believe Iran is the clear winner of the current round of talks.

According to the leak, Revolutionary Guard commander Ahmad Vahidi said, “We brought President Trump to his knees. We got what we wanted.” He was also quoted as saying Iran intends to keep the Americans “on a short leash,” warning that any violation, even a minor one and regardless of who commits it, would give Tehran grounds to threaten to close the Strait of Hormuz, which would pressure Trump and his team into agreeing to almost anything.

The article says the private comments also show that Iran does not plan to use any money it receives under an agreement in the way Washington expects, directly contradicting recent public remarks by U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance. Vahidi was quoted saying Trump thinks Iran will spend the money on buying American goods, and that “that will never happen in our lifetime.”

The leak says Tehran’s next goal is to convince Americans that Israel is the main “bad actor” in the Middle East, in order to damage Israel’s standing internationally. The officials reportedly also said they will not give up any clause, will keep threatening, and if necessary will even walk away from the talks. The article concludes that, at least until November, the Revolutionary Guard appears to be running the show in Iran and possibly across the region, under Trump’s watch.