There are no ongoing talks between Iran and the United States and no upcoming meetings planned, despite claims by US President Donald Trump, The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday, citing Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei.
Baghaei told the WSJ that all of Iran's negotiators were still in the country, except for Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi who was visiting a religious site in Iraq.
On the other hand, the Iranian Foreign Ministry confirmed that talks with Oman concerning the future of the Strait of Hormuz were continuing, and both Oman and Iran noted that there had been progress made over the last few days.
Mediators in the discussions told the WSJ that the current proposal being considered involved creating a temporary new route through the strait for commercial shipping, and that Persian vessels would enter through Iranian waters and exit via Omani waters without paying any fees.
The mediators stated that they were still waiting for a response from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), but that Iran had responded favorably. However, Iran later demanded that the sanctions on its oil be removed and that it receive a guarantee that it would not be attacked.
Senior Arab officials also told the WSJ that other countries in the region have requested that an agreement with Iran would include guarantees that it would not attack their territories, either directly or using their proxies.
Mediators also said that Pakistan had offered to host the next round of talks between Iran and the US, the WSJ reported.
Trump claims talks with Iran ongoing
On Monday, Trump claimed that talks with Iran are ongoing, but are Tehran’s last chance to reach a deal with Washington “before decapitation,” while speaking with reporters in the Oval Office.
He alleged that Iran, with the backing of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar, initiated the renewed talks because they “did not want to be hit” by strikes Trump claimed would have been the biggest attacks since World War II.
“They knew what was coming. It was going to come last night, and it would have gone on for a long time, and there’d be essentially very little left,” he warned. “This is the last chance for them to sign a good document.”
Goldie Katz and Shoshana Baker contributed to this report.