Baqaei hits back at Miliband over 'Iranian aggression' remarks

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei has accused the United Kingdom of reversing the roles of "aggressor and victim" after Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said he discussed "ending Iran's aggression, including in the Strait of Hormuz" with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. In a post on X, Baqaei said the regional turmoil stemmed from "unlawful interventions, including those backed or supported by Britain" . He argued that the accusation against Tehran ignored what he described as two rounds of unlawful aggression against Iran in nine months, despite its pursuit of negotiations. "For the UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband to portray Iran as the 'aggressor' after two rounds of unlawful aggression against it in just nine months, even as it pursued negotiations, is a grotesque reversal of victim and aggressor. It marks yet another low in the UK’s long record of hostile campaigns against Iran," Baqaei said. "It is as absurd as portraying Nazi Germany as a 'defender of peace' while casting the UK and its allies in WWII as the aggressors," he added. The chaos engulfing our region is the consequence of unlawful interventions, including those backed or contributed to by the UK. For the UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband to portray Iran as the “aggressor” after two rounds of unlawful aggression against it in just nine months, even as it pursued negotiations, is a grotesque reversal of victim and aggressor. It marks yet another low in the UK’s long record of hostile campaigns against Iran. It is as absurd as portraying Nazi Germany as a “defender of peace” while casting the UK and its allies in WWII as the aggressors. — Esmaeil Baqaei (@IRIMFA_SPOX) October 15, 2026