President Donald Trump said he would personally call Iran to end the war.
Trump said in media interviews on the 23rd (local time) that Iran and the United States want negotiations and that they would probably have a phone call today, adding that negotiations with Iran began the day before through a Middle East envoy.
He added that they, not him, contacted first and that there must be no more war or nuclear weapons.
Earlier that day, Trump said on his Truth Social that he had begun talks with Iran and would put attack plans on hold for the next five days while negotiations take place. On the 21st, he had warned Iran that he would attack power plants and other facilities if it did not open the Strait of Hormuz, but he hinted that the situation had entered a negotiating phase.
However, Iranian media are reporting that talks with the United States are groundless. Mehr News Agency, a semi-official Iranian outlet, cited a Foreign Ministry source as saying the U.S. president's remarks were political rhetoric aimed at preventing an energy price surge and an attempt to buy time to carry out his military plans.