Trump says new talks to start, Iran denies negotiation
Iran said it was nearing a deal with Oman over a new route through the strait.
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Iran said it was nearing a deal with Oman over a new route through the strait.
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US President Donald Trump said that new negotiations with Iran will begin Monday after he decided to hold off on striking the Islamic republic to pursue a deal to end the war entering its sixth month.
Trump told reporters on Sunday that the talks would cover the Strait of Hormuz — a route for global energy supplies that has become a key sticking point in the conflict — and ultimately, the denuclearization of Iran.
Iran’s foreign ministry said on Monday there were currently no negotiations with the US but there were talks with Oman over the management of the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
“We are not currently negotiating with the United States. Our negotiations are with Oman to secure passage through the Strait of Hormuz,” said foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei during a weekly press briefing.
For its part, Iran said it was nearing a deal with Oman over a new route through the strait, where a tanker reported an explosion nearby on Sunday, underscoring the continued volatility of the strategic waterway.
Oil prices fell on Monday at the opening of Asian trade after Trump announced the new negotiations, with West Texas Intermediate dropping 4.7 percent to $80.72 per barrel.
Washington and Tehran have been at war since 28 February, when the US and Israel launched surprise strikes against Iran, though months of on-off diplomacy have led to periods of relative calm.
Following a return to strikes last month, fears had mounted that the fighting could escalate once again. Trump had threatened to hit Iran “very hard” and was reportedly considering renewed attacks including against energy infrastructure, with US embassies across the region on alert.
Trump pulled back from that threat Saturday, saying the “perimeters” of a deal were there.
“Now what we’re doing is we’re talking to them in the form of a negotiation. It begins tomorrow afternoon,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday, without providing details of the venue or participants in the talks.
The US president said he had been asked by Iran as well as US partners Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar to hold off on the strikes, which he claimed would have been “the biggest attack since World War II.”
A previous ceasefire deal that included the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz fell through, and Iran has since tightened its control over the waterway.
The US president said at the start of the conflict that the war was necessary to deal with Iran’s nuclear program. Western nations accuse Iran of seeking a bomb, though Tehran insists the program is entirely civilian in nature.
‘Exchange of views’
Iranian lawmaker Hassan Ghashghavi, spokesperson for the parliament’s national security commission, said on Sunday that mediators were trying to revive the US-Iran memorandum of understanding that was agreed in June.
That agreement was not intended as a final peace deal, but as a stepping stone to negotiations on a comprehensive agreement, though it did include provisions on Hormuz.
“They know that the main issue and, in fact, the key to the matter right now is the issue of the Strait of Hormuz, so yes, there is an exchange of views,” Ghashghavi said.
