US President Donald Trump shocked reporters on Monday by revealing that the United States would begin direct, high-level talks with Iran over its nuclear program, a move that could reshape the future of the region's nuclear negotiations.

“We're having direct talks with Iran, and they've started,” Trump said during a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval Office. "Maybe a deal's going to be made, that would be great. We are meeting very importantly on Saturday, at almost the highest level."

The announcement came as a surprise, particularly after Iran rejected the idea of direct negotiations just a day earlier, calling them pointless. Trump had pulled the U.S. out of the last nuclear agreement with Iran in 2018, and speculation has grown that Israel, possibly with U.S. assistance, might take military action against Iranian facilities if a new agreement is not reached.

“Everybody agrees that doing a deal would be preferable to doing the obvious — and the obvious is not something that I want to be involved with, or frankly, that Israel wants to be involved with, if they can avoid it,” Trump said.

The surprise revelation was made amid a broader discussion between Trump and Netanyahu, the first foreign leader to personally request an exemption from U.S. tariffs that have rattled the global economy. Netanyahu, in his meeting with Trump, pledged to eliminate the trade deficit between the two nations and reduce trade barriers. Israel also moved to lift its remaining tariffs on U.S. imports ahead of the meeting.

“We feel Israel can serve as a model for many countries in terms of negotiating on tariffs,” Netanyahu said.

Gaza discussions

The two leaders also discussed the ongoing situation in Gaza, where a U.S.-brokered truce between Israel and Hamas has recently collapsed. Netanyahu confirmed that new negotiations were underway, aiming to secure the release of more hostages from Gaza.

“We're working now on another deal that we hope will succeed, and we're committed to getting all the hostages out,” Netanyahu said.

Trump reiterated his plan for the U.S. to "control" the Gaza Strip, which he described as a “great piece of real estate.” This plan was first announced during Netanyahu’s last visit to Washington in February.

Unusual meeting dynamics

Netanyahu’s visit is his second trip to Washington since Trump returned to power, coming just days after the U.S. president imposed a 17 percent tariff on Israel during his "Liberation Day" announcement. The visit was arranged at short notice, and the scheduled press conference between the two leaders was abruptly canceled without explanation. Instead, they spoke to a small group of pool reporters in the Oval Office.

Trump also refused to exempt Israel, a key U.S. ally and top beneficiary of U.S. military aid, from the global tariff measures, citing a significant trade deficit between the two countries.

On Sunday evening, Netanyahu met with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, according to his office. He also met with Trump's special Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff on Monday.