America News Agency

According to CCTV, U.S. President Donald Trump announced that a new round of negotiations with Iran will begin today, adding that once an agreement on the Strait of Hormuz is reached, discussions will shift to Iran's nuclear program.

Speaking to reporters, Trump said Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar had asked the United States to halt its planned military operations, stating that those countries "believe an agreement is close."

Trump said, "There is an agreement on the Strait of Hormuz. After that, there will be an agreement on the nuclear program, or you can call it the denuclearization of Iran."

Claiming that Iran had also requested the United States to cancel its planned attacks, Trump added, "What we're doing now is talking with them through negotiations."

Iran also issued positive messages regarding the negotiations.

According to the official IRNA news agency, Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said that talks between Iran and Oman regarding the Strait of Hormuz had reached their final stage and that the agreement was nearing completion.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei told state broadcaster IRIB that the talks with Oman were not about fully opening or fully closing the strait.

Baghaei said the two countries were working on a new traffic separation scheme and maritime route in the Strait of Hormuz that would respect the sovereign rights of all parties while protecting Iran's national interests and security.

Tensions in the region escalated after the United States and Israel carried out joint strikes against Iran in February, prompting Tehran to tighten restrictions on maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.

The U.S. military also stated last month that its strikes on Iranian targets were intended to protect commercial shipping.

Iran responded by launching missile and drone attacks against U.S. bases in the region.