Iran War and U.S. Diplomacy

Axios reports that a direct communications channel between U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has been reactivated in recent days, marking the first known direct messaging between the sides since the U.S.–Iran war began more than two weeks ago. A U.S. official and another source say Araghchi has sent texts focused on ending the war, even as that same U.S. official insists that Washington is 'not talking' to Iran and declines to describe how many messages were exchanged or their substance. President Donald Trump told reporters Monday that Iran has 'communicated' with the U.S. and that 'they want to make a deal,' but he questioned whether those reaching out are actually authorized to negotiate and repeated his claim that Iran’s leadership is in flux and its new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, may be dead. A senior U.S. official is quoted dismissing Iran’s demands for 'reparations' while saying Trump is open to a deal that would let Iran 'integrate with the rest of the world and make money from their oil,' framing any talks as coming from a position of U.S. strength. Iranian officials, for their part, are publicly denying any ceasefire talks with the Trump administration and say they want permanent guarantees rather than a temporary pause that would allow the U.S. and Israel to regroup, highlighting a wide gap between each side’s public posture and these quiet contacts.