Trump Says US Envoys Met Iran Mediators, Sees Momentum Toward Deal

President Trump said Tuesday that his envoys met Iran mediators and that there is momentum toward a deal. Iran's president is in New York, but no direct US-Iran meeting has yet been scheduled.

President Trump said Tuesday that his envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, held a productive meeting with Iran mediators that day. He said there is momentum toward a deal, that Iran has been in communication with the US, and that he expects Iran to take positive action. He also said he expects a settlement to be reached, and he described the relationship with Iran as developing.

On the talks, Trump said: "we will see what happens with that." He urged Iran to act quickly. "There will be a time when it's too late," he said.

The claim comes days after Iran's Revolutionary Guard said it struck vessels in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran's parliamentary committee has also proposed a 20 per cent fine for transit breaches through the strait, according to state news agency Fars. Iranian officials have said ships will be detained until that fee is paid.

Tehran has toughened its position since an earlier US deal collapsed, according to IRGC spokesman Hossein Mohebi. Arab mediators are working to arrange a direct meeting between US and Iranian officials at the UN, where Iran's president is already present. No such meeting has yet been scheduled.

Trump has made similar predictions before. He has said the US and Iran will reach a deal "one way or the other," and that oil is flowing at peak levels. He has forecast an agreement after the election. He has also urged Iran to make a deal, while Iran has conditioned any settlement on the lifting of the US military blockade. Tuesday's statement marks a shift from the recent pattern of hardened positions and stalled mediation. If direct contact between Washington and Tehran is genuinely underway, rather than only through intermediaries, it would raise the odds of a negotiated settlement. It could also ease the geopolitical risk premium built into oil and regional equities. Traders are weighing whether this is a real softening or another round of hopeful rhetoric that does not lead to a deal.