Trump says there are no ongoing or planned talks with Iran

President Trump said Tuesday that there are no ongoing talks with Iran and no new discussions have been planned, almost six months into the war launched jointly by the U.S. and Israel, which Mr. Trump had said he expected to take no more than six weeks.

"There are no talks or conversations going on, or scheduled, with the Islamic Republic of Iran," he wrote in a post on his Truth Social platform. 

"The Naval Blockade remains in full force and effect," he continued. "The Hormuz Strait is open and operating." 

"All water mines have been removed or detonated," Mr. Trump added, repeating a claim he made last week.

While some tankers are believed to be getting through the strait with their transponders switched off to effectively hide from view, traffic through the crucial maritime choke point has been hugely reduced since the war began in late February, with both the U.S. and Iran imposing restrictions on the waterway.

As recently as Monday, Mr. Trump indicated to Fox News that there was still some level of discussion between U.S. and Iranian officials, saying specifically that there were "backchannel" contacts between Americans and members of Iran's powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. 

By Tucker Reals

https://www.cbsnews.com/live-updates/us-iran-war-deal-strait-of-hormuz/#post-update-56ac1ed9

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9:45 AM

U.S. envoy in Turkey condemns Israel for "unnecessary escalation" with airstrikes on Syrian air base

The U.S. ambassador to Turkey chastised Israel Tuesday for what he called an "unnecessary escalation" for airstrikes targeting an air base in Syria's northern Idlib region.

Israel has not acknowledged carrying out the strikes, but Syrian officials and state media said at least four strikes hit the Abu al-Duhur Airbase Monday night and Tuesday morning, causing damage but no casualties.

In a post on X Tuesday, U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack said the U.S. was "deeply concerned that the confirmed Israeli airstrikes on Abu al-Duhur Airbase" – which was used by the Syrian air force – "constitute an unnecessary escalation that does not advance regional stability."

In a statement published Tuesday, Syria's foreign affairs ministry called the airstrikes an "unjustified act of aggression, a flagrant violation of Syria's sovereignty, and a dangerous escalation."

Syria's post-Bashar al-Assad government "has neither adopted a predatory posture nor maintained proxy forces," Barrack wrote. "It has, in fact, repeatedly indicated a preference for de-escalation with Israel."

"The United States continues to believe that restraint and engagement offer the more constructive course," he added. "We encourage all parties to prioritize logical discourse over further military incidents."

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