US and Iran to Resume Talks After Planned Attack is Called Off

The negotiations are not expected to involve a direct face-to-face meeting between US and Iranian officials. Instead, intermediaries are likely to carry messages between the two sides. Sources said Pakistan’s interior minister and Qatari officials are expected to send emissaries to help get the talks moving as quickly as possible. Qatar is expected to play a particularly important role in facilitating the discussions, while Pakistan is also stepping up its diplomatic efforts. What makes this round of diplomacy different is that it comes just a day after US President Donald Trump announced plans for a massive strike on Iran. His decision was followed by a flurry of calls between Trump and regional leaders. One of the most important calls was with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who, according to sources, presented a united position from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries and warned about the possible unintended consequences of expanding the war. The sequence of events is also significant. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi spoke with Pakistan’s army chief, the Saudi foreign minister and the Iraqi foreign minister before Trump announced that talks with Iran would take place on Monday. Iran, meanwhile, is increasing its diplomatic efforts across the region while continuing to use the Strait of Hormuz as a key source of leverage. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told the government that talks with Oman over the Strait of Hormuz were in their final stages. Araghchi also held phone calls with Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan and Pakistani Army chief Asim Munir. Iran's Foreign Ministry said the discussions focused on efforts to protect regional security and stability. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said the talks with Oman were aimed at creating a system for managing passage through the Strait of Hormuz while protecting the interests of both Iran and Oman. But he made clear that these discussions are separate from any talks with the United States. He also warned that the talks with Oman do not guarantee that the Strait of Hormuz will reopen. Meanwhile, OPEC+ has agreed to increase oil production by around 188,000 barrels per day from September. Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Algeria and Oman announced the decision in a joint statement, saying it showed their commitment to keeping the global oil market stable. The September increase completes the gradual rollback of a 1.65 million-barrel-per-day production cut agreed in 2023. At the time, the United Arab Emirates was also part of the group, but it left OPEC in May. Jorge Leon, an analyst at Rystad Energy, said OPEC+ had now finished unwinding its voluntary cuts. "OPEC+ has finished unwinding its voluntary cuts. The next challenge is managing the surplus that could emerge as export flows normalise," he said. However, Leon said the latest increase would have little immediate effect because the Strait of Hormuz remains restricted. He said the bigger impact on the oil market would come once normal exports through the region resume. Even as Trump prepares to return to negotiations, the US military has made clear that it remains prepared for further action. US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth repeated Trump's claim that the Pentagon had been ready to launch an attack on Iran at "levels not seen since World War 2". In a post on X, Hegseth said the US military "remains ready" and is "locked and loaded". His comments underline the uncertainty surrounding the talks, with Washington keeping the threat of military action on the table even as it pursues diplomacy. Iran has warned that the situation in the Strait of Hormuz will not simply return to how it was before the war. Baghaei accused the US of attacking Iran before an agreed timeline had expired, while Tehran continues to use control over the strategic waterway as leverage in the wider conflict. Iran is stepping up diplomatic contacts across the region while continuing to use the Strait of Hormuz as a major source of strategic leverage. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said talks with Oman on the strait were in their final stages. He also held calls with Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan and Pakistan’s army chief Asim Munir on regional security and stability. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said discussions with Oman are focused on creating a maritime framework for passage through the Strait of Hormuz while protecting the interests of both countries. However, he stressed that the talks are bilateral and separate from any negotiations with the US. He also said an agreement with Oman would not automatically mean the strait would reopen. US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has repeated Trump’s warning that the Pentagon was prepared for an attack on Iran on a scale not seen since World War II. In a post on X, Hegseth said the US military remains ready and “locked and loaded”, even as Washington prepares to return to negotiations with Tehran. The UK economy could contract in 2027 if the Strait of Hormuz remains closed into next year, according to EY forecasts. The firm said UK growth could slow to 0.5% this year and the economy could shrink 0.2% in 2027 if the strait remains shut until early or mid-2027. If it reopens by September, UK growth could rise to 0.9% this year and 1.2% in 2027. US President Donald Trump has said negotiations with Iran will begin Monday afternoon, but he has not explained what exactly Washington and Tehran would discuss or what terms are being considered. Trump has spoken about a possible agreement linked to reopening the Strait of Hormuz, but details of the proposal remain unclear. It is also not yet known who will take part in the talks or what issues will be formally placed on the table. The average price of gasoline in the US stood at $4.09 a gallon on Sunday, according to AAA. That was two cents lower than a week earlier but remained about 34% higher than before the war began, showing the continued impact of disruptions to oil supplies and shipping. US stock futures moved higher following Trump’s decision to hold off on the planned attack and resume talks with Iran. Dow Jones futures were up around 0.5%, S&P 500 futures gained about 0.5%, while Nasdaq futures rose roughly 0.8%. OPEC+ has agreed to increase oil production by another 188,000 barrels per day in September. The move marks the sixth consecutive production increase by the group and completes its plan to gradually unwind a 1.65 million-barrel-per-day production cut introduced in 2023. The Strait of Hormuz has remained effectively impassable to normal maritime traffic since fighting between the US and Iran resumed on July 8. Before the war, around 20 million barrels of oil moved through the waterway every day, accounting for roughly one-fifth of global oil consumption. The limited number of alternative routes means prolonged disruption could continue to put pressure on energy markets. Oil prices dropped after Trump announced that the planned strikes had been called off and negotiations would resume. Brent crude, the international benchmark, fell around 5.6% to about $83 a barrel, while US crude dropped about 5.5% to around $80 a barrel as markets reacted to hopes of a diplomatic breakthrough. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei said an understanding with Oman over a new shipping route does not mean the Strait of Hormuz will reopen. Baqaei said discussions with Oman were continuing on a mechanism to manage the waterway. He argued that the reopening of the strait was a separate issue and blamed its closure on what Tehran called the US naval blockade and Washington’s breach of commitments. Despite Trump’s claims of progress, Tehran has not publicly indicated that it has agreed to reopen the Strait of Hormuz or changed its position on control of the waterway. Iranian state media also denied that Tehran had asked Trump to cancel the planned US strikes. The semi-official Fars news agency mocked the US president’s decision, saying: “Trump the fool has run out of steam!” Trump said countries including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, along with Iran, urged him to hold off on the planned attack. He said the allies believed there was a chance of reaching a deal. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman also spoke to Trump and pushed for de-escalation, according to Saudi state media. US President Donald Trump said negotiations with Iran will begin again on Monday, a day after he said he had called off a planned “massive attack” on the country. Trump said the two sides had made progress and that talks would focus on reaching a deal quickly, including an agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. He said the negotiations would also cover Iran’s nuclear programme. Israeli forces are burning houses in the al-Mashaa area between the towns of al-Mansouri and Majdal Zoun in southern Lebanon, Lebanon's National News Agency reported. The development comes after the NNA said earlier that five Lebanese army soldiers sustained minor injuries in an Israeli attack on Bint Jbeil in the Nabatieh governorate. The reported death toll from Israeli attacks across Gaza has risen to 14, according to local sources. The latest casualties include two Palestinians, one of them a child, who were killed in an Israeli drone strike on a tent sheltering displaced people in the Remal neighbourhood west of Gaza City. Two Lebanese soldiers sustained minor injuries in an Israeli strike on Bint Jbeil in southern Lebanon, according to a statement carried by the state-run National News Agency. The NNA said the attack targeted a civilian vehicle that was being escorted by a Lebanese army vehicle in the Nabatieh governorate. Israeli Energy Minister Eli Cohen said Israel should take "full control" of Gaza, despite saying Israeli forces already control about 70% of the enclave. Cohen also said there was "no deal" to halt attacks on Gaza, becoming the latest senior Israeli official to oppose the US-brokered proposal under which Hamas would disarm. Iran's acting Defence Minister Majid Ibn al-Reza said Tehran treats every threat from its adversaries as "real and credible", even if it is part of psychological warfare. According to Iranian state media, he said Iran would neither be "caught off guard" nor remain "passive", adding that the country would use such threats to strengthen its military readiness, deterrence and defence capabilities. Loud explosions have rocked the town of Kunin in Nabatieh governorate’s Bint Jbeil district, according to the National News Agency (NNA). Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told U.S. President Donald Trump that dialogue and de-escalation should be prioritised to reduce regional tensions, according to the Saudi Press Agency. The crown prince stressed the need for a truce that could pave the way for diplomatic solutions and help prevent the Middle East from being drawn into a wider conflict. The two leaders also discussed bilateral cooperation, SPA said. Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich called on the government to approve the construction of three settlements along the northern edge of the Gaza Strip. In a post on X, the far-right minister also said Israelis would return to settlements evacuated in 2005 and establish additional settlements in the occupied West Bank. Tehran views every threat from its adversaries as "real and credible" ⁠even ​if made as part of psychological ​warfare, Iran's ​acting defence ⁠minister, Majid Ibn al-Reza, said ‌on Sunday according to state media. "We will neither ⁠be ⁠caught off guard nor ⁠remain ‌passive," ​he said, adding ‌that Iran would use ‌threats ​as ​a ​basis to increase its ​military readiness, strengthen ⁠deterrence and enhance its military ‌capabilities.