READ HERE: https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/oil-plunges-stocks-spike-after-trumps-comments-iran
Summary
- Trump announces “productive” talks with Iran, “postpones” military strikes for 5 days
- IRGC-linked media deny contact
- Trad Govt-linked media yet to issue comment
- Market response: oil down, yields down, stocks up (but all off their kneejerk extremes)
* * *
Denials Begin
It did not take long for the denials to emerge. Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency (which is the propaganda arm of the IRGC so take it with lots of salt) said that anonymous Iranian source, Iran is not in contact with Trump adding that “there is no direct or indirect communication with Trump.”
“He retreated after hearing that our targets would be all power plants in West Asia,” Fars said. A similar denial came from the semi-official Tasnim news reports which said that Iran is not in talks and there have been no talks with US President Donald Trump. It added that Iran will continue to respond and defend country; Strait of Hormuz won’t return to pre-war status through psychological operations. Trump’s social media statement is “psychological warfare”
“The statements of the US President are part of efforts to reduce energy prices and buy time for the implementation of his military plans,” state-run Mizan news agency reports, citing a Foreign Ministry statement as saying.
“There are no talks between Tehran and Washington”
“Yes, there are initiatives from regional countries to reduce tensions, and our response to all of them is clear: we are not the party that started this war, and all these requests should be referred to Washington.”
Caught between this headline pingpong…
- *IRAN’S TASNIM: THERE HAVE BEEN NO TALKS, THERE ARE NO TALKS
- *IRAN’S TASNIM NEWS CALLS TRUMP COMMENT PSYCHOLOGICAL WARFARE
- *IRAN’S TASNIM NEWS CITES SENIOR SECURITY OFFICIAL
- *IRAN’S TASNIM: WE WILL CONTINUE TO RESPOND AND DEFEND COUNTRY
One thing to note amid all these denials, as Nader Itayim noted in a post on X:
Iranian media outlets to issue some kind of response/ reaction so far are Fars News, and Tasnim – both considered to have close ties with the IRGC.
Irna, or IRIB, the more traditional govt-linked outfits, yet to issue any comment.