US President Donald Trump has rejected efforts to restart negotiations with Iran for now, expressing uncertainty over the country’s leadership, CNN reported on Monday, March 16, citing White House officials.
According to two senior White House officials, Iranian representatives recently reached out to Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and other administration officials in an attempt to reopen diplomatic channels.
Trump, however, instructed his team not to engage in negotiations at this stage, the officials said.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi denied that any such contact had taken place, saying his last communication with Witkoff occurred before what he described as a US decision to abandon diplomacy.
“Any claim to the contrary appears geared solely to mislead oil traders and the public,” Araghchi wrote on X.
Conflicting accounts, stalled diplomacy
The differing accounts highlight ongoing tensions and the lack of direct communication between Washington and Tehran, according to CNN.
A White House official said Trump remains open to talks but not immediately, as he wants ongoing military operations to continue.
US allies in the Middle East have also offered to mediate discussions on Iran’s nuclear program and a potential end to the conflict, but those efforts have been declined for now, the officials said.
White House officials cited uncertainty over Iran’s new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, as one reason for delaying negotiations.
Trump told reporters he was unsure whether Khamenei was “actually in charge” and questioned his condition, noting that the leader has not appeared in public since his reported appointment.
“We don’t know if he’s dead or not,” Trump said, adding that conflicting reports about Khamenei’s health remain unverified.