US president claims Iran will hand over enriched uranium, refrain from seeking nuclear weapons; Iran denies talks; parliament speaker Qalibaf, said leading Tehran’s side, derides ‘fake news’; Netanyahu says Trump told him of chance to achieve war goals through a deal

In a bombshell announcement, US President Donald Trump revealed early Monday that his administration was engaged in productive talks with Iran regarding a “complete and total resolution” of the US-Israeli war with the Islamic Republic.

He later said the sides were close to an agreement under which Iran would agree not to seek nuclear weapons and would give up enrichment, and that the terms would make Israel “very happy.”

Iran denied talks were taking place, despite reports of indirect negotiations between the parties.

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made no initial response but five hours later issued a video in which he said he had spoken to Trump earlier in the day, and that the US president “believes that there is a chance to leverage the massive achievements of the IDF and the US military in order to achieve the goals of the war through an agreement — an agreement that protects our vital interests.”

Trump’s initial statement, made on social media, came nearly two days after he had threatened to bomb Iran’s power plants unless it opened the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours. On Monday, Trump said he had postponed those strikes for five days to allow for more negotiations.

“I am pleased to report that the United States of America and the country of Iran have had, over the last two days, very good and productive conversations regarding a complete and total resolution of our hostilities in the Middle East,” Trump wrote in an all-caps Truth Social post.

“Based on the tenor and tone of these in depth, detailed and constructive conversations, which will continue throughout the week, I have instructed the Department of War to postpone any and all military strikes against Iranian power plants and energy infrastructure for a five day period, subject to the success of the ongoing meetings and discussions,” he added.

Read More Here