ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - Two Iraqi lawmakers have dismissed reports that the United States is pushing to dissolve the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), following claims that US President Donald Trump included such a request in a message to Iran’s supreme leader.

One lawmaker called the alleged US proposal “Satan’s dream in paradise,” while another said disbanding the PMF would be “impossible.”

Earlier this month, Trump said that he has addressed a letter to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, pressing them for talks over the nuclear issue, and threatening military action in the absence of an entry into negotiations.

Iranian officials say that Trump's message addressed not only Iran but also Iraq. As a result, Iran reportedly briefed Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein on the letter in recent days. Iran’s Ambassador to Baghdad Muhammad Kadhim Al Sadiq said that the letter included a direct request to dissolve armed groups in Iraq, specifically, the PMF.

Iraq’s ruling Shiite Coordination Framework strongly denied that any formal request had been made to dismantle the PMF.

“The PMF is an official security and military body. It cannot be dissolved because Iraq still faces serious security threats both internally and externally,” Ali al-Fatlawi, a senior figure in the alliance, told The New Region on Saturday. “The talk about ending the PMF is just wishful thinking, it’s like Satan’s dream in paradise.”

Fatlawi also said the Iraqi government, through official channels, had confirmed that no American or international body had submitted such a request. “Even though it is clear some parties want this to happen, it will not,” he said. “The PMF has stood in the way of many foreign plans and continues to do so. It is a safety valve for Iraq’s security, political process, and democracy. No amount of pressure will lead to its end.”

Meanwhile, a member of the Iraqi Parliament’s security and defense committee said there is only one way the PMF could be dissolved, and it would take a “miracle”.

Yasser Watout told The New Region that any talk about foreign influence on the future of the PMF is misplaced. “Iraq does not respond to external requests to dissolve the PMF,” he said. “It is an internal matter. The PMF is under the command of Iraq’s commander-in-chief, and it operates according to his orders.”

He emphasized that Iran has no control over the PMF, calling it a purely Iraqi institution. “The PMF was formed through legislation passed by the parliament. Canceling that law would require another vote. That’s not just hard, it’s nearly impossible. It would need a miracle,” Watout said. “Most lawmakers support the PMF and its role, so talk of dissolving it is just empty rhetoric.”

In a televised interview Friday night, Iran’s ambassador to Iraq, Sadiq, confirmed that Trump’s message to Khamenei did, in fact, include a request to dissolve or merge the PMF.

“The PMF is an Iraqi institution. Iran has nothing to do with it, so we cannot negotiate with the US about it,” Sadiq said. “The US wants to dissolve or merge the PMF, but that is unacceptable to both Iraq and Iran. The PMF played a major role in defeating the Islamic State [ISIS]. Today, it is a powerful and experienced force within Iraq’s security apparatus.”

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Thursday that Tehran’s response to the letter has been delivered to Oman, but did not reveal specific details about the content of either of the messages.

Speaking to Iran’s official news agency IRNA, Araghchi said that the reply detailed Iran’s views on the situation and addressed the contents of Trump’s letter thoroughly.

The top diplomat reaffirmed that Iran remains opposed to direct talks under what he called “maximum pressure and military threats.” However, he said indirect negotiations, like those conducted under former Presidents Hassan Rouhani and Ebrahim Raisi, could still be on the table.