US President Donald Trump on Monday rejected reports that he had offered Iran sanctions relief and the release of frozen Iranian funds in exchange for concessions on its nuclear programme.
“This is untrue. I offered them NOTHING,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social, responding to an Axios report that cited US officials as saying he was willing to offer sanctions relief and release frozen Iranian funds in return for “concrete” steps from Tehran on the nuclear issue.
Axios did not name the US officials cited in its report.
Also Read: Trump offers Iran sanctions relief, frozen funds for concrete nuclear progress
CNN separately reported, citing an unidentified US official, that Trump was prepared to offer sanctions relief and release frozen Iranian funds as part of a final agreement, provided Iran made “concrete progress” on the nuclear issue.
Trump has set out changing goals and timelines for the war with Iran, which began on February 28 after the US and Israel launched attacks on Iran. Tehran responded with strikes on Israel and Gulf states hosting US military bases.
The conflict has killed thousands and displaced millions following US-Israeli strikes on Iran and Israeli attacks on Lebanon.
US and Iranian officials held separate talks with mediators on Monday as efforts resumed to bring an end to the seven-month war, officials from both countries said.
Trump has identified the weakening of Iran’s nuclear capabilities as one of the objectives of the war.
Iran does not possess nuclear weapons and denies seeking to develop them. Tehran maintains that, as a signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, it has the right to pursue nuclear technology for peaceful purposes. The US is a nuclear-armed country.
