Iran denies talks with US after Trump postpones strikes on power grid

Iran denied on Monday that it had engaged in negotiations with the United States, after President Donald Trump postponed a threat to bomb Iran's power grid because of what he described as productive talks with unidentified Iranian officials.

Trump wrote early in the US morning on his Truth Social platform that the US and Iran had held "very good and productive" conversations about a "complete and total resolution of hostilities in the Middle East".

As a result, he said, he was postponing a plan to hit Iran's energy grid for five days. His announcement sent share prices sharply higher and oil prices sharply lower, a sudden reversal to a market swoon caused by his weekend threats and Iran's vows to respond.

He later told reporters that his special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner, who had been negotiating with Iran before the war, had held discussions with a top Iranian official into the evening on Sunday, and would continue on Monday.

"We have had very, very strong talks. We'll see where they lead. We have major points of agreement, I would say, almost all points of agreement," he told reporters before departing Florida for Memphis.

In Memphis he said Washington had been negotiating with Iran "for a long time, and this time they mean business," adding: "I think it could very well end up being a good deal for everybody."

He did not identify the Iranian official in touch with Witkoff and Kushner, but said: "We're dealing with the man who I believe is the most respected and the leader."

"We're dealing with some people that I find to be very reasonable, very solid. The people within know who they are. They're very respected, and maybe one of them will be exactly what we're looking for."

'FAKENEWS', SAYS IRAN PARLIAMENT SPEAKER

Iran's powerful parliament speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said on X that there had been no such talks with the United States, and ridiculed the suggestion as an attempt to rig financial markets.

"No negotiations have been held with the US, and fakenews is used to manipulate the financial and oil markets and escape the quagmire in which the US and Israel are trapped," he wrote.

"Iranian people demand complete and remorseful punishment of the aggressors. All Iranian officials stand firmly behind their supreme leader and people until this goal is achieved."

Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards said they were launching fresh attacks on US targets, and described Trump's words as "psychological operations" that were "worn out".

"The contradictory behaviour of the US president does not cause us any negligence on the war front or the continuation of the battle with the hostile enemy," the Guards said in a statement.

Although there was no immediate confirmation that talks had already taken place as described by Trump, there were indications of outreach, with third countries acting as potential mediators or helping to set up contacts. Iran's foreign ministry described initiatives to reduce tensions, without giving further details.

A Pakistani official and a second source said talks on ending the war could be held in Pakistan as soon as this week.

The Pakistani official said US Vice President JD Vance, as well as Witkoff and Kushner, were expected to meet Iranian officials in Islamabad this week, following a call between Trump and Pakistan's army chief Asim Munir.

The White House confirmed Trump's call with Munir. When asked about a possible visit by Witkoff and Kushner to Islamabad, White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said, "These are sensitive diplomatic discussions and the US will not negotiate through the press. This is a fluid situation, and speculation about meetings should not be deemed as final until they are formally announced by the White House."

The Pakistani prime minister's office and foreign ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Iranian media reported that Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz ‌Sharif discussed the impact of the war on regional and global security.

Pezeshkian was quoted as saying that Iran was committed "to preserving stability and security and countering foreign interference in regional affairs" and wanted to strengthen cooperation with the countries of the region.