Iran has responded to statements made by U.S. President Donald Trump, calling them lies after he claimed that Iran is developing missiles capable of reaching America and has resumed its nuclear weapons program.
On Wednesday, 25 Feb 2026 GMT+7, Iran condemned U.S. President Donald Trump's annual policy address, labeling it a “big lie” after the U.S. leader said Tehran is developing missiles capable of striking U.S. territory and is attempting to revive its nuclear weapons program.
"They have developed missiles that can threaten Europe and our overseas bases, and now they are accelerating the creation of missiles that will soon be able to reach the United States," Trump said. "They have been warned not to try to revive their weapons programs, especially nuclear weapons, but they continue. They are restarting the entire process again."
Satellite photos previously analyzed by the AP news agency showed Iran beginning to refurbish missile production bases and conducting activities at three nuclear facility sites that the U.S. attacked in June last year.
However, Esmail Bakaei, spokesperson for Iran's Foreign Ministry, responded by comparing Trump’s words to those of Joseph Goebbels, Adolf Hitler’s propaganda minister. He accused Trump and the U.S. government of "conducting a campaign of misinformation and falsehoods" about Iran.
"Their claims about Iran's nuclear program, guided missiles, and the death toll during the January unrest are merely a replay of 'big lies,'" Bakaei wrote on the platform X.
Notably, during his policy address, Trump claimed at least 32,000 people died in nationwide protests in Iran last January— a figure much higher than estimates by activist groups. The U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) reported around 7,000 confirmed deaths and believes the actual number may be much higher.
Meanwhile, the Iranian government, which has historically reported lower death tolls in previous unrest, provided a single update on 21 Jan stating that 3,117 people had died.
Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Speaker of Iran’s Parliament, said the U.S. has only two choices: pursue diplomacy or face Iran's wrath.
“If you choose the diplomatic table—a diplomacy that respects Iran’s national dignity and mutual interests—we will sit at that table as well,” Ghalibaf said, according to Student News Network, a semi-official outlet believed to be close to Iran’s Basij militia of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
“But if you decide to repeat the past through deception, lies, miscalculations, false information, and launching attacks during negotiations, you will surely face a strong response from the Iranian people and national defense forces.”
Iran and the U.S. are scheduled to hold their third round of talks on Thursday, 26 Feb 2026 GMT+7, in Geneva, with Oman acting as mediator. Meanwhile, Donald Trump is pressing Iran for a nuclear deal by deploying the world’s largest aircraft carrier group to the Middle East and threatening military force if talks fail.
Follow international news:https://www.thairath.co.th/news/foreign
Source:apnews