President Donald Trump said Monday that talks with Iran would begin, but U.S. officials told CBS News that no new negotiations are planned, adding to the confusion over Washington’s diplomatic posture.
Iran also said it has no plans for direct talks with Washington. Trump responded by accusing Iran’s leadership of being “incredibly duplicitous,” after saying a day earlier that a deal on the Strait of Hormuz and Iran’s denuclearization was close.
Trump said the current Iran channel runs only through Oman, and that the two sides have discussed temporary passage routes through the strait over the past week. He also used a White House executive order signing to criticize U.S. oil companies, naming Chevron and ExxonMobil and saying they were making too much money from the war with Iran.
On the military front, U.S. Central Command said it forcibly changed the routes of 44 commercial vessels as part of a maritime blockade operation aimed at Iran. The military said it neutralized two of the ships and boarded two others. Trump said no vessel heading to Iran would be allowed through without an agreement or Iran’s “complete surrender.”
