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Tehran has suspended negotiations with Washington on reaching a final settlement, citing threats from the United States, a senior Iranian source told TASS.
“Due to direct threats made by U.S. President Donald Trump against the Iranian people and Washington’s repeated violations of its commitments, Iran has suspended negotiations with the United States on concluding a final agreement,” the source said.
According to the source, any U.S. military aggression against Iran would be met with a broader and more decisive response than before.
“While continuing to violate its obligations, the United States launched attacks on Iran’s southern islands. In response to this aggression, which constitutes a gross violation of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, Iran carried out large-scale retaliatory strikes against U.S. positions in the region. Iran has issued a firm warning that any further U.S. military action will be met with a more decisive, broader and harsher response than previously,” the source said.
Earlier on July 8, U.S. President Donald Trump threatened Iran while speaking to reporters alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Ankara.
“We hit them very hard last night, very, very hard,” Trump said.
He added that the United States would most likely launch another round of powerful strikes against Iran later in the evening.
“I gave them a little warning: we’re going to hit them hard again tonight,” Trump said.
U.S. forces overnight on July 8 struck around 80 targets in Iran in response to the recent targeting of three vessels in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran, in turn, launched retaliatory strikes targeting 85 U.S. military facilities across the region. The United States also cancelled plans to ease oil-related sanctions on Iran.
Against the backdrop of the latest escalation, Trump said the ceasefire with Iran was no longer in effect and that Washington no longer intended to hold negotiations with Tehran.