Washington, March 25 US President Donald Trump said that Iran had offered what he described as a significant oil-and-gas-related gesture tied to the Strait of Hormuz, using it as evidence that the United States was now dealing with interlocutors capable of reaching a deal.
Speaking in the Oval Office during the swearing-in of Markwayne Mullin as Homeland Security Secretary, Trump said, “We're in negotiations right now,” adding that “the other side, I can tell you, they'd like to make a deal”.
He said the development followed a shift in leadership inside Iran. “We have really regime change,” Trump said, adding that “the leaders are all very different than the ones that we started off with”.
Trump said the United States was in contact with a new group of Iranian officials and cited what he called a “present” from Tehran as a sign of progress. “They gave us a present and the present arrived today,” he said. “It was a very big present, worth a tremendous amount of money.”
He later clarified that the gesture was “oil and gas related” and linked to maritime flows. When asked if it was connected to the Strait of Hormuz, Trump replied, “Yeah, it was related to the flow and to the Strait.”
The president said the move showed that Washington was now engaging “the right people”. “They said they were going to do it and it happened and they're the only ones that could have done it,” he said.
Trump maintained that any deal would hinge on Iran’s nuclear programme. “They cannot have a nuclear weapon,” he said, adding, “they're not going to have a nuclear weapon”. He also said, “they've agreed they will never have a nuclear weapon”.
At the same time, he said the US had held off on further military action while talks continued. Referring to a planned strike on a major Iranian power facility, Trump said, “we held off based on the fact that we're negotiating”.
He repeatedly argued that Iran was negotiating from a weakened position. “They have no Navy left, they have no Air Force left,” he said, adding that much of their military capability had been destroyed.
Trump said US forces had established dominance over Iranian airspace. “We are roaming free over Tehran,” he said, adding that US forces “can do whatever we want”.
Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth echoed that assessment, saying, “Never in history has a modern military been so rapidly and historically obliterated, defeated”.
Trump said the administration was pursuing a dual-track approach of military pressure and diplomacy. “We are in about the best bargaining position,” he said, while stressing that the objective was to end the conflict without further loss of life.
“I'd like to be able to do that,” he said, referring to avoiding additional strikes. “If we can end this without more lives being down… I'd like to be able to do that.”
He also suggested that Iran’s outreach was driven by its current position. “Who wouldn't, if you were there?” he said when asked why Tehran would seek a deal.
Despite the ongoing talks, Trump said he did not trust the Iranian side. “I don't trust anybody,” he said. “I don't trust them.”
Still, he expressed confidence that negotiations would produce results. “They're going to make a deal,” he said.
The president described the situation as a potential turning point in the conflict, saying, “I think we're going to end it,” while adding, “I can't tell you for sure”.
He also reiterated that the US would maintain pressure until its core objective was met. “It starts with no nuclear weapons,” Trump said. “There won't be any nuclear weapons.”
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