Iranian Speaker Says U.S. Accord Proves Washington's Defeat

Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on Wednesday that the memorandum of understanding signed between Iran and the United States in Islamabad amounts to a U.S. defeat. He made the remarks at the 20th conference of the Parliamentary Union of the OIC Member States in Baku, Azerbaijan, roughly a week after the deal was concluded.

Ghalibaf said, "The Islamabad memorandum has become a declaration of the defeat of the United States." He argued that dialogue only works when "the other side stops trying to impose its will and accepts Iran's rights," and said the agreement was not the result of pressure or coercion but of "steadfastness, resistance and strength." He also described the accord as proof that American pressure had failed.

According to the report, the memorandum has 14 main clauses and was signed digitally one week ago after talks mediated by Pakistan, Qatar and others. Its key provisions include an immediate and permanent halt to military attacks on all fronts, including Lebanon, opening the Strait of Hormuz to free shipping without fees for at least 60 days, sanctions relief, the return of frozen funds, and a 60-day window for talks on a final deal covering nuclear and regional issues.

Ghalibaf, who headed the Iranian negotiating team, signed the document alongside U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance. Tehran is presenting the deal as a strategic victory because, it says, Washington failed to achieve regime change, full control over Hormuz, or the complete dismantling of Iran's missile capabilities. In Baku, Ghalibaf also highlighted Palestinian self-determination, security and economic cooperation among Muslim states, and a combination of strong defense, national unity and diplomacy as the basis of Iran's security.