Iran and US Hold Talks on Sidelines of UN Summit, Trump Says

Iranian officials held three hours of talks with US special envoy Steve Witkoff on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, President Donald Trump disclosed, adding that a further meeting is expected in the near future.

According to the account of the discussions, a senior Iranian official indicated willingness to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to full transit if the United States takes steps to ease pressure on Tehran, pointing to a potential trade-off at the center of the talks.

A sensitive diplomatic channel

The involvement of Steve Witkoff as the US envoy suggests the talks are being handled through a dedicated diplomatic channel rather than formal state-to-state negotiations, a common approach in sensitive discussions between the US and Iran given the lack of full diplomatic relations between the two countries.

The reported willingness to discuss the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global energy transit route, underscores how economic and energy considerations remain central to any potential de-escalation between Washington and Tehran, alongside the broader dispute over Iran's nuclear program and regional activities.

Trump's disclosure that a further meeting is planned suggests the talks are viewed by at least the US side as an ongoing process rather than a one-off exchange, though no timeline or additional details about the substance of a follow-up meeting were provided.

The talks add to a broader pattern of intermittent, indirect engagement between the US and Iran during high-profile international gatherings, where sideline diplomacy has periodically opened channels that are otherwise difficult to establish.