Iran pushes back against Trump ahead of Geneva talks in face of major US military deployment

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Iran pushed back Wednesday against U.S. President Donald Trump's pressure tactics ahead of critical talks in Geneva over Tehran's nuclear program, alternating between calling his remarks ''big lies'' to saying negotiations may yield an agreement through ''honorable diplomacy.''

The remarks by two Iranian officials ahead of Thursday's talks come as America has assembled its biggest deployment of aircraft and warships to the Middle East in decades, part of Trump's efforts to get a deal while Iran struggles at home with growing dissent following nationwide protests last month.

If the negotiations fail, Trump repeatedly has threatened to attack Iran — something Mideast nations fear could spiral into a new regional war as the embers of the yearslong Israel-Hamas war still smolder. Already, Iran has said all U.S. military bases in the Mideast would be considered legitimate targets, putting at risk the tens of thousands of American service members in the region.

Satellite photos shot Tuesday by Planet Labs PBC and analyzed by The Associated Press appeared to show American vessels typically docked in Bahrain, the home of the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet, all out at sea. The 5th Fleet referred questions to the U.S. military's Central Command, which did not immediately respond. Before Iran's attack on Qatar in June, the 5th Fleet similarly scattered its ships at sea to protect against a potential attack.

Iran responds to Trump's State of the Union speech

Trump on Tuesday night in the U.S. gave his annual State of the Union speech, touching on Iran and the nuclear negotiations.

''They've already developed missiles that can threaten Europe and our bases overseas, and they're working to build missiles that will soon reach the United States of America,'' Trump said. ''They were warned to make no future attempts to rebuild their weapons program, and in particular nuclear weapons, yet they continue. They're starting it all over.''

Responding to Trump, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei sought to compare him to Joseph Goebbels, Adolf Hitler's propaganda minister. He accused Trump and his administration of conducting a ''disinformation & misinformation campaign'' against Iran.

''Whatever they're alleging in regards to Iran's nuclear program, Iran's ballistic missiles, and the number of casualties during January's unrest is simply the repetition of ‘big lies,'" Baghaei wrote on X.

Trump said in his speech at least 32,000 people were killed in the protests, which is at the further end of estimates offered by activists for the death toll. The U.S.-based Human Rights Activist News Agency has so far counted more than 7,000 dead and believes the death toll is far higher. Iran's government, which long has downplayed death tolls in other unrest, offered its only toll on Jan. 21, saying 3,117 people were killed.

Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, Iran's parliament speaker, separately said the U.S. could either try diplomacy or face Iran's wrath.

''If you choose the table of diplomacy — a diplomacy in which the dignity of the Iranian nation and mutual interests are respected — we will also be at that table," Qalibaf said, according to the semiofficial Student News Network, a media outlet believed to be close to the all-volunteer Basij force of Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard.

Talks hang in balance

Iran and the U.S. are due to meet Thursday in Geneva, their third round of talks under the mediation of Oman, long an interlocutor between Tehran and the West.

If the talks fail, uncertainty hangs over the timing of any possible attack, as well as its mission and goals.

The U.S. has not made clear the aims of possible military action. If the goal is to pressure Iran to make concessions in nuclear negotiations, it's not clear whether limited strikes will work. If the goal is to remove Iran's leaders, that will likely commit the U.S. to a more massive, longer military campaign. There has been no public sign of planning for what would come next, including the potential for chaos in Iran.

The status of Iran's nuclear program is another mystery. Trump earlier said American strikes ''obliterated'' it. Now, dismantling whatever remains of the program appears to be back on the administration's agenda. IAEA inspectors have not been allowed to inspect those sites and verify what remains.

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