New Delhi: The Iranian parliament speaker, Mohammad-Baqer Qalibaf, will not attend the 12th BRICS parliamentary forum in New Delhi due to unforeseen circumstances, the Iranian embassy in India said on Saturday. However, Iran’s parliamentary delegation will participate in the meeting, reaffirming the country’s commitment to active and effective participation in BRICS summits and meetings.
The embassy in a post on X said the Iranian delegation would continue dialogue and consultations with delegations from other BRICS member countries. These discussions aim to expand and deepen bilateral and multilateral cooperation, particularly in parliamentary relations.
The embassy also thanked the Indian government for its hospitality and the arrangements made to host the meeting. It wished the forum success and expressed hope that it would strengthen cooperation and engagement among member countries.
The 12th BRICS meeting brings together speakers of parliaments from BRICS member countries to discuss parliamentary cooperation and engagement. Iran’s statement confirmed that its delegation would attend despite Qalibaf’s absence.
The announcement comes amid heightened tensions between the US and Iran. The US president, Donald Trump, warned on Friday that Washington could launch fresh strikes on Iran unless Tehran agrees to a deal, RNA Media earlier reported. Trump said, “We may do another little Epic Fury, or they’ll agree.” Referring to Iran, he added, “If they’re smart, they’ll just say, let’s get down to business.”
Separately, US intelligence has warned of increased Iranian efforts to target American personnel. According to a memo released on Friday, the director of national intelligence, Jay Clayton, told the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, that efforts to target US personnel had “substantially increased”, with alleged lethal plots against American citizens reaching advanced stages in the Middle East and some other countries.
Clayton said the intelligence was relevant to more personnel than were currently cleared to receive it. He offered to downgrade sensitive information so Rubio could share it more widely with state department staff.
The Iranian embassy did not provide further details about the circumstances behind Qalibaf’s absence.