Iran Says It Is Not Negotiating With Washington
Iran declared on Monday that it was not in any direct negotiations with the United States, flatly contradicting President Trump’s claim that talks would begin. A foreign-ministry spokesman said Iran was speaking only to Oman, about a possible “route” through the Strait of Hormuz, and that the waterway “will in no way” reopen as before. Mr Trump, in turn, branded Iran “unbelievably duplicitous” and said the blockade would stay until a deal or “total surrender”.
The hardening on both sides deflated hopes of the swift breakthrough Mr Trump had trumpeted over the weekend, when he called off a threatened strike citing an imminent agreement. Washington now says there are no new talks planned, only indirect contact through mediators, while Tehran insists it never sought the strikes halted. For all the rhetoric, the immediate danger of an attack on Iran’s oil sites appeared to have passed: crude fell more than 4 per cent on the day to around $84 a barrel, holding the sharp drop that followed the pause. Yet with Hormuz still shut and no ceasefire, the calm remains brittle. Watch whether the mediated contacts produce anything, or the strikes resume.