Whose version of reality: Inside Trump and Iran’s credibility standoff
Iran says it is not in talks with the United States despite President Donald Trump saying just hours earlier that negotiations would begin Monday afternoon. The dispute started over the weekend. Trump said he called off what he described as “massive” strikes on Iran, ones he called the “biggest attacks since World War II.” Speaking aboard Air Force One on Sunday, he said Iran and US allies in the Middle East had asked him to hold off because the outline of a deal had been agreed. He said talks would begin Monday afternoon.
But Iran’s government tells a different story. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei told said that Iran is not currently negotiating with the United States and has no plans to. He said Iran’s delegation is staying inside the country, with no plans to host mediators or send negotiators abroad in the coming days. Iran’s parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, went further, posting that no talks had taken place at all.
The two sides also disagree on who is even facilitating contact. Trump’s account points to a deal involving Gulf allies. Baghaei, though, said Pakistan is the mediator, working with Qatar, a different picture than earlier reporting, which had focused on Oman.
Iran does confirm talks with Oman, but on a narrower issue. Baghaei said those talks are about creating a safe shipping route through the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway that carries a large share of the world’s oil exports. He was careful to say that even if Iran and Oman agree on a shipping route, it would not be enough to fully reopen the strait. He tied any real improvement to an end to what he called “US aggression” a sign Iran sees the shipping talks as a technical fix, not a broader peace deal.
Trump gave few details on his side. He did not say where the talks would be held or who would attend. He also kept the threat of military action open, saying the US was “ready to go anytime we want,” even as he insisted he was “not looking to kill people.” He said Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and other Gulf allies, including the UAE and Qatar, had urged him to hold off on strikes because they believed a deal was close.
This is not the first time the two sides have told conflicting stories. A previous ceasefire deal, meant to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, collapsed last month. Trump has repeatedly said a negotiated end to the conflict was near, only for fighting to resume. Iran has made similar denials before: in an earlier round of this same dispute, Iranian officials accused Trump of using false claims of progress to influence oil and financial markets.
For now, the two governments agree on almost nothing except that a narrow, technical conversation about shipping safety is happening between Iran and Oman. Everything beyond that — the timing, the scope, even who is in the room depends on which side you ask.
