Trump says talks with Iran ongoing, but Tehran not ready for deal to end war

US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that the United States is in contact with Iran as the war enters its third week, but added that Tehran is not yet ready to reach a deal to end the conflict.

“Yes, we’re talking to them,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One when asked whether any diplomatic efforts were underway to halt the war, which has spread across the Middle East and unsettled global markets. However, he declined to provide details about the nature of the discussions.

“But I don’t think they’re ready. But they are getting pretty close,” Trump said.

Earlier, Iran’s foreign minister denied that any talks with the United States were taking place.

Trump also said he was unsure whether he wanted to pursue an agreement to end the war. “First of all, nobody even knows who you’re dealing with, because most of their leadership has been killed,” he said.

According to reports, Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei and dozens of other senior officials were killed on the first day of the joint US-Israeli attacks on February 28.

Despite this, Trump insisted that Iran was eager to reach an agreement. “They want to make a deal badly,” he said.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi rejected the suggestion, saying Tehran had no interest in negotiations with Washington.

“We are stable and strong enough. We are only defending our people,” Araghchi said in an interview with the CBS programme Face The Nation aired on Sunday.

“We don’t see any reason why we should talk with Americans, because we were talking with them when they decided to attack us,” he added. “There is no good experience talking with Americans.”