By Matthew Hoare

 

TEHRAN, 29 Sept. - (ANA) - Iran has denied plans to take part in new negotiations with the US this week after President Donald Trump said he had expected further talks.

 

"Iran's delegation in New York has no plans for negotiations with the United States," state-run news agency IRNA said on Monday, citing an unnamed source on the Iranian negotiating team.

 

Trump told US news outlet Axios on Sunday that he expected new talks this week, a day after rejecting an Iranian proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within seven days and return to peace talks.

 

"Iran's views and positions were conveyed clearly and explicitly to the US side … via a Qatari mediator," IRNA said, adding that Iran's negotiating team would return to Tehran on Tuesday.

 

The two sides held their first discussions in three months on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York last week. The indirect talks saw Qatari officials mediate between an Iranian negotiating team led by Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and Trump envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.

 

"I expect more talks with Iran [this week]," Trump told Axios's Barak Ravid. "They want to make a deal, but it is not the deal I want to make. It is what we would have maybe agreed to a year ago. They overplayed their hand."

 

Two regional sources also told the outlet that indirect talks could resume as soon as Monday.

 

Iran has proposed reopening the disputed waterway and restarting nuclear talks within seven days if the US agrees to meet a list of conditions.

 

They include an end to the US naval blockade, the lifting of oil sanctions, the unfreezing of Iranian assets and a permanent end to the war across the region.

 

The framework is similar to the memorandum of understanding agreed in June, which produced a short-lived ceasefire.

 

Trump rejected the proposal on Saturday.

 

"They made a proposal but I rejected it," he said. "They want to make a deal where they open the strait immediately because they're losing so badly."

 

Since the collapse of the MoU, the US has ramped up economic pressure on Tehran, reimposing the blockade on Iranian ports and pressuring countries to cut ties with Iranian airlines.

 

Iran has seen its control of the strait challenged in recent weeks, as a US military effort to escort vessels through the waterway has helped oil and gas shipments reach their highest levels since the war began on 28 February.

 

Meanwhile, Iran's Revolutionary Guard has continued to attack ships in the strait. Iranian media reported that almost 20 ships came under attack on Friday and Saturday.

 

In a statement carried by state television, Khamenei said Iran had emerged "stronger and more resilient" from the war.

 

"Today, having suffered painful blows at the hands of valiant fighters and the guardians of the Strait of Hormuz, they (the enemies) do not venture beyond the Arabian Sea," the statement read. "Whenever they have braved this risk, they have only brought harm upon themselves. It will not be long before the Arabian Sea, too, would rid itself of their presence," he added.

 

 

 

 

Eight US Marines were injured in an Iranian missile attack in the strait earlier this month, NBC News reported on Monday, citing three US officials.

 

The Marines were not seriously injured but suffered smoke inhalation and possible traumatic brain injuries, according to the officials.

 

The attack took place on 14 September and had not previously been reported. All the personnel returned to duty shortly afterwards.

 

The Defence Department has come under increasing scrutiny over its disclosure of casualty figures during the seven-month war, with multiple US news reports raising questions over whether the publicly released figures capture the full toll of the conflict.

 

The Washington Post reported last week that at least 22 US service members had been killed in the conflict, citing six US officials. That is four more than the Pentagon has publicly announced.

 

At least 861 others have been wounded, according to the Pentagon's public database.

 

 

 

 

QatarEnergy has extended force majeure on gas shipments to Asia and Europe by another month amid continued disruption in the Strait of Hormuz, according to Bloomberg.

 

The state-owned company has notified Bangladesh and Pakistan that affected shipments would remain suspended through November, while Italy's Edison said deliveries had been cancelled until early December. At least one Indian buyer was also told that force majeure would remain in effect.

 

Qatar has been able to increase shipments in recent weeks as more vessels have navigated the strait, but flows remain well below pre-war levels.

 

The disruption has piled pressure on Qatari state finances and pushed gas prices in Asia and Europe to around their highest levels since late 2022.   - (ANA) -

 

AB/ANA/29 September 2026  - - -