Tehran's red lines dominate parliament's closed-door session on US talks

Iran's parliament convened a closed-door session on Tuesday to review the ongoing indirect negotiations between Tehran and Washington, with lawmakers expressing firm red lines on domestic nuclear enrichment, lifting of sanctions and foreign oversight.

Speaking to reporters after the session, Abbas Goudarzi, spokesperson for the Iranian Parliament's presiding board, said the meeting included a briefing from the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, emphasizing the Islamic Republic’s core demands in the talks.

“Iran remains committed to negotiations as long as the other side remains committed,” Goudarzi said. “Our emphasis is on peaceful domestic enrichment. Our definition may differ from the Americans; enrichment means internal production, not the import of enriched material.”

He underlined that any final deal must include the removal of sanctions, unfreezing of blocked assets, and restoration of banking ties. “These are fundamental pillars of our position,” he said.

Goudarzi added that regional issues, Iran’s defensive capabilities, and the suspension of enrichment are not open for negotiation. “The talks are strictly nuclear in scope. We reject any inspection outside of those by the International Atomic Energy Agency,” he added.

Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf echoed this stance, saying that the legislature’s role is supervisory. “The government must remain within the framework of the Strategic Action Law to lift sanctions and protect the Iranian nation’s interests,” he said.

The Strategic Action Law to Lift Sanctions and Safeguard the National Interests of Iran, passed in 2020 and aimed at more parliamentary influence on nuclear policy, mandated a rapid escalation of nuclear activities and a significant reduction in IAEA monitoring in reaction to the US' withdrawal from the JCPOA and the subsequent reimposition of sanctions in 2019.

Ghalibaf also addressed recent remarks by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has stepped up rhetoric against Iran, dismissing the comments as attempts to influence the Iran-US talks.

Earlier this week, Netanyahu said, “A real deal that works is one that removes Iran’s capacity to enrich uranium for nuclear weapons... Dismantle all the infrastructure of Iran’s nuclear program. That is a deal we can live with.”

Ghalibaf brushed off the remarks. “Netanyahu, in a desperate attempt to avoid political extinction, has resorted to threats. These worthless tirades are not taken seriously”, he said.

Drawing attention to the alignment between US and Israel, Ghalibaf said, "The Zionist regime cannot take independent action without US permission," in spite of threats.

However, it is US President Donald Trump who has said outright that if Iran does not agree to a nuclear deal, the US will bomb Iran.

Ghalibaf also delivered a stark warning: "Should even a fraction of these threats be executed, Iran’s response will be decisive. Any aggression would be akin to igniting a powder keg, putting not just the Zionist regime, but all US bases in the region squarely in the crosshairs of Iranian retaliation."