Trump says Iran talks ongoing to open Hormuz 'literally by tomorrow', but Tehran denies negotiations
New York, Aug 4
Even as US President Donald Trump warned that he was giving Iran a "last chance before decapitation", he said that they were talking about opening the Strait of Hormuz "literally by tomorrow".
"I mean they're going to go quickly, one way or the other. It's not very complex", he said on Monday at the Oval Office.
"We're talking about the Strait, the opening of the Strait, having it open, literally by tomorrow", he said, but Iran has denied there were any talks with the US.
The contradictory claims leave the gateway to the world for 20 per cent of fossil fuels trapped in uncertainty.
"We are not holding any negotiations with the United States at present", Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei said at a news briefing in Tehran.
Speaking a few hours before Trump, he said that except for Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who is on a pilgrimage to Iraq, all the negotiators were in Iran.
Trump dismissed it, writing on Truth Social, "Iranian Leadership is unbelievably duplicitous" because after they "beg" for a meeting "they say, openly and proudly, that they're not having any discussions".
Baqaei did say that Iran was in consultations with Oman, which is across from it on the Strait, for what the Iranian news agency Tasnim described as a "temporary arrangement that would ensure maritime safety in the strategic waterway".
He said that no other country was involved in Muscat-Tehran talks.
Trump said that he held off the massive bombing campaign he had planned on Sunday because Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and "numerous people" called him to hold off.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman spoke to Trump on Sunday and, according to the Saudi Press Agency, "emphasised the necessity of prioritising dialogue to reduce tensions and the importance of exerting all possible efforts to achieve a truce that paves the way for diplomatic solutions".
Trump said Iran was spooked by leaks about the planned attack, "very very hard, harder than any" since World War II and pleaded,"We want to talk. We want to talk about the Strait".
A Memorandum of Understanding on opening the Strait, where shipping was disrupted after the bombing of Iran, was signed by Trump and Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian on June 17, but unravelled within weeks after Iran attacked ships in the Strait and the US blockaded Iranian ports.
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who had initiated the February 28 bombing of Iran with the US, met Trump in Washington last week.
Days after the meeting, Trump prepared for the attack, which media reports said could be carried out with Israel.
However, the Gulf and neighbouring countries have a stake in preventing the conflict from flaring up as they bear the direct brunt of Iran's retaliation.
Iranian attack on a US base in Jordan killed three US Army personnel, one of them of Indian origin, last month.
Iran also hit Bahrain and Kuwait in the resumed confrontation.
A second chokepoint, the Bab al-Mandab Strait that leads to the Red Sea, was also put into play when Iran-allied Houthis in Yemen attacked Saudi oil installations in the area.
That disrupted shipping in the area, which serves as an alternate outlet for some oil, mainly from Saudi Arabia.
— IANS
Reader Comments
At this point, the Strait of Hormuz is like a hostage situation. Iran says one thing, America says the opposite, and countries like India are caught in the middle worrying about oil supplies and trade routes. Our government should be talking to both sides - we have good relations with the Gulf states and we import oil from Iran too. We can't let global powers play games with our energy security. India needs to stand up for itself here. 💪
I'm not surprised Iran is denying talks. After Trump's "last chance before decapitation" comment, who would want to sit down with him? The US sends mixed signals - bombing threats one day, negotiating the next. As someone who follows geopolitics closely, I think the Gulf leaders are the real heroes here. MBS and the others calling Trump to hold off the attack shows they understand the consequences of a full-blown conflict. The economic fallout would hit everyone, including India's millions of workers in the Gulf.
It's disturbing to see how casually Trump talks about bombing a country. "One way or the other, it's not very complex" - that's someone who's never seen the effects of war firsthand. The death of an Indian-origin soldier in Jordan shows this conflict has already cost us. I hope the Indian government is quietly working behind the scenes to de-escalate this. We need peace in the region, not more reckless comments from Washington.
The contradiction between Trump and Tehran shows how broken international diplomacy has become. Instead of the traditional backchannels, we have Twitter-style statements from world leaders. Meanwhile, real lives are at stake - oil tankers can't move, shipping companies are paying higher insurance premiums, and common people in India might face price hikes on essential goods. And for what? Egos and political posturing. The Oman-mediated talks seem like the only sensible path forward. Common sense should prevail
We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.