War in the Middle East: What do we know about the negotiations between the United States and Iran mentioned by Donald Trump?

Donald Trump has reversed course: while the American president threatened to bomb Iranian power plants if Tehran did not unblock the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, March 23 in the evening, he has now extended the deadline by five days. He now claims that peace negotiations are underway with a mysterious Iranian interlocutor to swiftly end this war.

However, these recent developments remain unclear. Donald Trump’s statements have not been confirmed at this stage by Tehran. The Iranian Foreign Minister even speaks of “fake news.”

According to Washington, discussions took place on Sunday and Monday night over the phone between American envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, and a high-ranking Iranian official currently leading Iran, but not the new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei. The possibility of a meeting organized by the Iranian parliament president was mentioned, but has been denied.

These mysterious discussions are well advanced, according to Donald Trump, especially regarding the Iranian nuclear issue. The American president now talks about “a regime change underway in Iran.” He has given a five-day ultimatum, until this Saturday, to reach a comprehensive agreement to end the conflict. If not, the United States will “continue to bomb energetically” Iranian energy infrastructure, he asserts. Some media even mention a meeting planned between the two parties, a negotiation session expected to take place sometime during the week in Islamabad, Pakistan.

If the Iranians refuse to confirm direct discussions with the Americans, several Middle Eastern diplomatic sources claim to be intermediaries between the two sides. Egyptian, Turkish, Omani, and Pakistani officials have reportedly been conveying messages in recent days. Their goal: to try to avoid the escalation promised by Trump, and especially to try to secure the blocking of the Strait of Hormuz, given its impact on the global economy.

However, all these intermediaries acknowledge that the positions of the two parties to start potential negotiations are very far apart. On one hand, the Iranians believe they are in a position of strength as more than 16,000 strikes against them in the past three weeks have not toppled the regime. They demand the right to collect a toll for each ship passing through the strait, the withdrawal of US bases in the Gulf region, and solid guarantees that neither the United States nor Israel will attack them in the future.

On the other hand, Donald Trump needs a swift exit from this war, but he wants to achieve at least one of his war objectives – whether it’s the Iranian nuclear program, ballistic program, regime change, or the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. The question remains at what price he will have to negotiate.