Iran’s Revolutionary Guard rejects Trump’s offer to negotiate

Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps said on Friday
Tehran will not negotiate with the United States and denied any US attack was
likely, a day after US President Donald Trump urged talks and said he could not
rule out a military confrontation.
Trump on Thursday urged Iran's leadership to sit
down and talk with him about giving up Tehran's nuclear programme and said he
could not rule out a military confrontation given the heightened tensions
between the two countries.
American B-52 bombers sent to the Middle East over
what Washington describes as threats from Iran have already arrived at a US
base in Qatar, US Central Command (CENTCOM) said.
"No talks will be held with the Americans and
the Americans will not dare take military action against us," Yadollah Javani,
the Guard's deputy head for political affairs, was quoted as saying by Tasnim
news agency.
"Our nation ... sees America as
unreliable."
Thousands march against US
Thousands of Iranians took part in marches on Friday
to voice support for the government's move on Wednesday to scale back curbs to
its nuclear programme under a 2015 deal with world powers, and threatened to do
more if signatories did not shield it from US sanctions.
State television showed thousands marching after
Friday prayers in Tehran and said similar marches were held across the country.
"America should know, sanctions have no
effect!" chanted the demonstrators, many of whom carried signs reading
"Down with USA".
Trump, who last year pulled Washington out of the
Iran nuclear deal and reimposed sanctions on Tehran, has expressed a
willingness to meet Iranian leaders in the past to no avail and renewed that
appeal in talking to reporters on Thursday.
Asked about Trump's comments, Iran's ambassador to
the United Nations Majid Takht Ravanchi said Iran had been talking with the six
powers, including the United States, within the framework of the nuclear deal.
"All of a sudden he decided to leave the
negotiating table. ... What is the guarantee that he will not renege
again?" Takht Ravanchi said in a US TV interview.
He dismissed US allegations of an Iranian threat as
"fake intelligence" and said they were " being produced by the
same people who in the run-up to the US invasion of Iraq did the same."
Military confrontation
Trump was asked by reporters whether there was a
risk of military confrontation with the US military presence in the area.
"I guess you could say that always, right? I
don't want to say no, but hopefully that won't happen. We have one of the most
powerful ships in the world that is loaded up and we don't want to do
anything," he said.
The media officer at Al Udaid air base, near Doha,
did not immediately respond to a phone call and email requesting comment and
details about the arrival of the B-52 bombers.
CENTCOM is responsible for US military operations in
the Middle East and Afghanistan.