US President Donald Trump is open to giving Iran sanctions relief and releasing frozen Iranian funds as part of a final agreement, but only if Tehran makes “concrete progress” on its nuclear programme, a US official told CNN on Monday.
The comments came as Qatar and other mediators tried to restart talks between Washington and Tehran. The negotiations had stalled after Trump rejected Iran’s latest proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
But hours after the US official spoke about possible sanctions relief, Trump himself denied that he had offered Iran anything. The mixed signals came as the war entered its eighth month, with both sides facing growing economic pressure.
US says nuclear issue must be addressed
A US official told CNN that Washington was having “positive and constructive” discussions with Iran through mediators. However, the official stressed that there would be no final agreement unless the nuclear issue was addressed.
Iran has indicated that it is willing to be flexible on its nuclear programme, but the two sides are still divided over when Iran would make its commitments. Washington and Tehran also remain apart on which side should take the first steps.
The US is also not fully convinced by Iran’s promises. The official said Washington remains doubtful because Iran had violated a memorandum of understanding by firing on commercial vessels.
The US is now looking for assurances that Tehran is serious about reaching an agreement.
The American side of the talks is being led by special envoy Steve Witkoff, Jared Kushner, Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Trump says: ‘I offered them NOTHING!’
Trump later rejected the suggestion that he had already offered Iran any concessions. In a post on Truth Social, he wrote: “I offered them NOTHING!”
The post came after an Axios report said Trump was open to giving Iran sanctions relief in return for progress on its nuclear programme.
The president had earlier said Iran was interested in reaching a deal, but that Tehran was not offering the kind of agreement he wanted. An Iranian diplomatic source told CBS News that one of the biggest problems is that Trump does not appear to have a clear position on what he wants from Iran.
Trump’s own comments on Sunday also showed that he remains unhappy with Iran’s proposal. Speaking to Axios, Trump said Iran wants a deal, but not the deal he wants.
“They want to make a deal, but it is not the deal that I want to make,” Trump said. “It is what we would have maybe agreed to a year ago. They overplayed their hand.”
Trump also said Iran was “losing badly”. He said he expected talks to resume this week, but added that renewed US strikes against Iran had not been ruled out.
US, Iran hold separate talks with mediators
On the other hand, US and Iranian officials spoke separately with mediators on Monday as both sides made another attempt to find a way to end the seven-month war, officials from the two countries said.
The latest discussions are expected to focus on an amended version of a seven-day proposal Iran presented last week on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, an official briefed on the talks told Reuters.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi stayed in New York after attending the UN General Assembly.
Iran is now waiting for Washington’s response to its latest ceasefire proposal and its conditions for allowing maritime traffic to pass again through the Strait of Hormuz, Iran’s state news agency IRNA reported.
“If the Americans claim they are seeking an agreement or a peaceful solution, we have presented that solution,” Araqchi said.
US President Donald Trump separately confirmed that American officials had spoken with mediators on Monday.
What is in Iran’s seven-day proposal
Iran’s proposal calls for an end to all hostilities in Iran and Lebanon.
It also calls for billions of dollars worth of Iranian assets to be unfrozen, an end to sanctions on Iranian oil and the lifting of the US blockade on Iranian ports.
If those conditions are met, Iran would allow the Strait of Hormuz to reopen. The waterway is a key route for oil tankers and carries a large share of the world’s oil shipments.
Under the proposal, the US and Iran would also return to talks over Tehran’s nuclear programme. Those talks would include Trump’s demand that Iran’s highly enriched uranium be seized or eliminated.