US President Donald Trump said he is not speaking to Iran, a sharp reversal from last week when he announced that talks with Tehran were imminent, despite Iran denying any such plans.
In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump wrote on June 30 that he is “not offering Iran anything…nor am I even talking to them since we totally obliterated their nuclear facilities.”
The United States bombed three key Iranian nuclear sites on June 22, including the heavily fortified underground facility in Fordow.
Trump appeared to be responding to comments by Democratic Senator Chris Coons, who had questioned Trump’s earlier remarks about China being able to resume purchasing oil from Iran following the US-brokered cease-fire between Israel and Iran on June 24.
“Either President Trump doesn’t know his own administration has crippling sanctions on Iranian oil, or he doesn’t care if our adversaries violate our own sanctions policies. I don't know which is more alarming,” Coons wrote on X.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baqaei on June 30 accused the Trump administration of making a habit of shifting positions.
“These constant shifts and mixed signals, which have become a regular pattern of US behavior over the past three or four months, are simply not something we can rely on,” he said at his weekly press briefing.
New Satellite Images Show Activity At Iran's Fordow Nuclear Site 1 Week After US Bombings
The foreign ministers of the Group of Seven on June 30 urged the resumption of negotiations for a deal to address Iran's nuclear program. A joint statement by the G7 foreign ministers also expressed support for a a cease-fire between Israel and Iran.
The extent of the damage to Iran’s nuclear program during the 12-day war with Israel remains unclear. Iran says its nuclear sites suffered extensive damages but has vowed to continue with its program, which it maintains is peaceful.
Rafael Grossi, the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said last week that Iran could resume uranium enrichment “in a matter of months.”
“Frankly speaking, one cannot claim that everything has disappeared and there is nothing there,” he said.
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