Iran-US war live: Trump says conflict ‘hopefully’ nearing end and claims to be in direct talks with Tehran

Iran’s national security chief Mohsen Rezaei has said that Tehran has no trust in the United States, urging Washington to take practical steps to rebuild confidence.

He said Iran had “no trust whatsoever” in the United States.

This comes as Donald Trump told reporters that the US is “hopefully toward the end” of its war with Iran, adding that he has spoken with Tehran “directly”.

Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi called talks with Chinese officials “successful”, saying Tehran values the strategic partnership it has built with Beijing.

He wrote on X: “Successful consultations in China with our partners. Iran values strategic partnership we have built over time.

“Today’s decisions will decide future strategic balance in the region, with immeasurable knock-on effects.

“4 principles for peace outlined by President Xi are key.”

Xi has called for peaceful coexistence, respect for national sovereignty, adherence to international law, and coordination between development and security to promote peace and stability in the Middle East.

President Donald Trump told reporters that the US is “hopefully toward the end” of its war with Iran, adding that he has spoken with Iran “directly”.

He also repeated his claim that Tehran was seeking a deal.

He told the crowd in North Carolina that gas and oil prices will “come down very quickly” after the war ends in Iran.

The US House of Representatives has passed a bill named after the late Senator Lindsey Graham, voting 262-159 to impose sweeping sanctions and tariffs aimed at increasing economic pressure on Iran and Russia, Reuters reported.

The Lindsey O Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, introduced by Graham himself, was approved by the Senate last month in an 86-11 vote.

While the legislation primarily targets Russia, it also extends the Iran Sanctions Act of 1996, signed by then-president Bill Clinton.

The 1996 law was due to expire in 2026 but has now been extended for another five years.

Dozens of Democratic representatives joined most Republicans in backing the bill, sending it to president Donald Trump to be signed into law.

Oil prices fell in early trading on Thursday, extending losses from the previous session after reports that Saudi Arabia was offering additional crude cargoes through Oman eased concerns over potential supply disruptions in the Middle East.

Brent crude futures fell $1.24, or 1.2 per cent, to $104.59 a barrel by 00:49 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures declined $1.14, or 1.1 per cent, to $101.29.Both contracts dropped by about $3 on Wednesday.

South Korean foreign minister Cho Hyun said on Thursday that no decision had been made on any military deployment to the Strait of Hormuz.

Cho was speaking to reporters before departing for Washington, where he is due to hold talks with US secretary of state Marco Rubio.

Earlier this month, it was reported that South Korea was considering deploying military assets to the Strait of Hormuz as it faced growing pressure from the US to do more in the Middle East.

Later, Seoul said that the military deployment was an option but clarified that nothing had been decided yet.

Despite an ongoing blockade of Iranian maritime trade and attacks by Iran’s military on commercial ships, the US military has said its forces have kept the Strait of Hormuz open to commercial shipping.

The US also claimed that they are helping facilitate the movement of hundreds of millions of barrels of oil through the strategic waterway.

On Wednesday, US Navy Captain Tim Hawkins, a spokesperson for US Central Command, said traffic through the strait “continues to flow”, rejecting suggestions that Iran controls the waterway.

“Since early May, we have assisted commercial vessels moving more than 900 million barrels of crude oil through the Strait of Hormuz to the global energy market,” Hawkins told Al Jazeera.

The US and Iran have continued to make competing claims over who has greater control of the critical Strait of Hormuz in the Gulf.

UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres has called for de-escalation and a return to diplomacy as tensions mount across the Middle East, including mounting hostilities between Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels.

“At this critical moment in the Middle East, de-escalation must be a priority,” Guterres said.

“Any actions that harm civilians must stop. Humanitarian operations must proceed safely and without obstruction. Navigational rights and freedoms must be fully restored & respected.

“The only path forward is de-escalation, diplomacy and dialogue,” he said.

President Donald Trump told reporters that the US is “hopefully toward the end” of its war with Iran, adding that he has spoken with Iran “directly”.

He also repeated his claim that Tehran was seeking a deal.

He told the crowd in North Carolina that gas and oil prices will “come down very quickly” after the war ends in Iran.