President Donald Trump on Tuesday denied reports that nuclear negotiations between the United States and Iran had stalled, saying the two sides have been in continuous contact every day for the past four days, including Tuesday.
“Fake News Reports that the Islamic Republic of Iran, and the U.S.A., stopped speaking a few days ago are false and erroneous,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “The conversations between us have been going on continuously, including four days ago, three days ago, two days ago, one day ago, and today.”
The president offered no details on the substance of the talks but issued a pointed warning to Tehran. “As I told Iran, ‘It’s time, one way or another, for you to make a Deal. You’ve been doing this for 47 years, and it cannot be allowed to go on any longer,’” he wrote.
The post comes amid a tense and fast-moving diplomatic situation. A White House official recently confirmed that U.S. and Iranian negotiating teams had reached a 60-day memorandum of understanding that would extend the ongoing ceasefire and set up nuclear talks. That memorandum would also lift restrictions in the Strait of Hormuz and specify that Iran must remove all mines from the waterway within 30 days, while the U.S. would lift its naval blockade accordingly.
The draft agreement includes commitments from Iran to never pursue nuclear weapons and to negotiate over a suspension of its uranium enrichment program and the removal of its stockpile of highly enriched uranium.
The U.S. would agree to negotiate over lifting sanctions and unfreezing Iranian funds during the 60-day period, though those steps would only be implemented as part of a final agreement that is verifiably carried out.
Despite the reported progress, significant friction remains. Even as the negotiations were being finalized, the U.S. and Iran had two skirmishes in the Strait of Hormuz in the preceding 48 hours.
Iran has also pushed back on some of Trump’s characterizations of the talks’ progress, with Iran’s state media outlet Fars News saying that Trump’s claims about the strait reopening were “not true” and “inconsistent with reality.”
Talks between the two sides are being mediated by Pakistan, and issues under discussion include freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs, reconstruction and sanctions, and a long-term peace agreement.
Trump expressed confidence that a deal is near, and over the weekend declared that his administration and Tehran had “largely negotiated” a settlement, though negotiations remained in flux.
U.S. officials said that if it becomes clear during negotiations that Iran is unable to deliver on the nuclear issue, Trump will have all options on the table.
(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
