Iran says no decision yet on a return to talks with the US

What the report says

Iran has not decided whether to resume talks with the United States, according to Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, as cited by Al Jazeera. In comments posted on Telegram and repeated to an Iranian outlet, Araghchi said messages were still being exchanged through mediators from Qatar and Pakistan, but stressed that this contact does not amount to formal negotiations.

Araghchi said Iran blames the United States for the return to violence after a memorandum of understanding signed in Pakistan in June. He added that any new political path would need to address the dispute over the Strait of Hormuz, a strategically important waterway for global shipping. Al Jazeera reported that Iran is separately working with Oman on a technical plan for shipping routes in the strait, but that transit would depend on broader political conditions being met.

The remarks came as tensions over the waterway intensified. On the same day, US President Donald Trump said he would declare the Hormuz Strait US territory after, as he put it, defeating Iran. Iran’s deputy foreign minister for legal and international affairs, Kazem Gharibabadi, responded on X that the strait has been and will remain Iranian.

Al Jazeera also noted that pressure is increasingly shifting toward economic tools, with US officials signaling new sanctions against Iran. The broader context is a long-running confrontation over Iran’s nuclear and regional role, sanctions, and control of key shipping lanes, with the Strait of Hormuz remaining central to both security and trade concerns.