Trump denies reports he offered to ease sanctions on Iran
Trump called the report "not true" and said he had offered Iran "NOTHING"; mediators from Qatar and Pakistan were reported to be preparing talks.
On 29 September 2026, President Donald Trump publicly rejected media reports that he had been prepared to ease sanctions on Iran in return for steps on Tehran's nuclear programme.
“That is not true. I have offered them NOTHING!” Trump wrote on his social network, Truth Social, urging the outlet that published the report to retract what he called "fake news."
Diplomatic contacts and mediators
The reports, which relied on unnamed U.S. officials, said that Trump was willing to relax economic penalties and release frozen Iranian funds if Iran took concrete measures on its nuclear activities. The same reporting said mediators from Qatar and Pakistan were due to meet this week to discuss a possible U.S.–Iran arrangement.
A senior Iranian official, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, told a Turkish news agency that Tehran had sent Washington a "seven‑day plan" via Doha and hoped to receive a "final answer" from the U.S. by Tuesday. Separate coverage in a U.S. financial newspaper said the Iranian proposal included demands such as lifting parts of the American maritime blockade.
Earlier this month, Trump publicly rejected Iran's proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz — a key sea lane for oil shipments. Before the war that the United States and Israel launched at the end of February, roughly one‑fifth of global oil needs transited the strait; it is also important for liquefied natural gas and fertilizer shipments.
After the conflict began, Iran's threats and attacks all but halted traffic through the strait, contributing to sharp increases in world oil and gas prices. The United States responded by imposing its own blockade on Iranian ports to intensify economic pressure on Tehran.
Photo: press material from the event
