President Trump claimed the U.S. and Iran were engaged in active peace talks, despite Tehran publicly denying any negotiations. He accused Iranian leaders of "duplicitous" behavior and said Iran sought talks to avert U.S. airstrikes, which he described as potentially "the biggest attack since World War II." Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said, "We currently do not have negotiations with America." Trump warned Iran it faced "every last chance before decapitation" if no agreement is reached.
Trump Issues Stark Warning to Iran, Claims Peace Talks Despite Tehran’s Denials
U.S. President Donald Trump in the Oval Office at the White House on August 03, 2026 in Washington, DC. Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
President Donald Trump continued to assert on Monday that the United States and Iran were engaged in active peace talks, a claim that directly contradicts public denials from Iranian officials and some U.S. sources.
"Iranian Leadership is unbelievably duplicitous! They ask for a meeting, some would say 'beg,' talks begin, with more scheduled in the immediate future, and they say, openly and proudly, that they're not having any discussions, that nothing is being talked about, and they're only dealing with 'Oman.'"
Speaking to reporters over the weekend, Mr. Trump said Iran approached the U.S. "hat in hand" to avoid further airstrikes and claimed the Pentagon had prepared what he described as "the biggest attack since World War II." He warned that such an attack "would have been disastrous for them," adding that "they didn't want us to do it, and frankly, Saudi Arabia didn't want it either." These characterizations are attributed to the president.
Iranian officials, however, rejected the suggestion that they were negotiating with Washington. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei told reporters, according to NBC News:
"We currently do not have negotiations with America."
Mr. Trump dismissed Tehran's denials as "their usual blather," and said Iran must either reach a deal with the United States or face unconditional surrender. Speaking from the Oval Office, he declared he was giving Tehran "every last chance before decapitation."
"Very tough to do what we have planned, still planned,"
"We'll see what happens."
At present, independent verification of active negotiations is limited. The contrasting statements from the U.S. president and Iranian officials highlight deep tensions and create uncertainty about the status of any diplomatic contacts. The reporting draws on Mr. Trump's posts and statements as well as comments reported by NBC News; the original account appeared on Salon.com.
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