TEHRAN (AFP) — Iran’s ambassador to Pakistan on Wednesday said there had been no talks between Washington or Tehran, after United States President Donald Trump signaled tentative progress in diplomatic efforts to end the war.

“We have also heard such details through the media, but according to my information — and contrary to Trump’s claims — so far no negotiations, direct or indirect, have taken place between the two countries,” said Ambassador Reza Amiri Moghadam, adding that it was “natural that friendly countries are always engaged in consultations with both sides to end this illegitimate aggression.”

The denial came a day after Trump also said that Iran gave him a “very big present” related to the Strait of Hormuz, boosting his confidence that he was talking to the right people in Tehran to end the war.

That cryptic announcement followed his unexpectedly postponed threatened attacks on Iran’s power plants.

“They did something yesterday that was amazing actually. They gave us a present and the present arrived today. And it was a very big present worth a tremendous amount of money,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.

“That meant one thing to me — we’re dealing with the right people.”

Speaking at the swearing-in ceremony for new US Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, Trump said the “gift” was “very significant,” adding that it was “oil and gas-related.”

Asked if it was related to his demand that Iran reopen the Strait of Hormuz to oil traffic, Trump replied: “Yeah, it was related to the flow and to the strait.”

The US president added that the “present” was not related to Iran’s nuclear program, but repeated his claim that the Iranian side “agreed they will never have a nuclear weapon.”

Trump has not yet revealed who the US is negotiating with in Tehran, saying only on Monday as he postponed a threat to attack Iran’s energy sites by five days that it is a “top person.”

“We’re actually talking to the right people, and they want to make a deal so badly,” Trump said.

Tehran has denied being part of any talks to end the war, which is now in its fourth week and has disrupted global oil supplies passing through the strategic Hormuz Strait.