Amid ongoing tensions in West Asia, conflicting claims from Washington and Tehran have cast uncertainty over possible diplomatic efforts to end the war.
US President Donald Trump said the two sides had held "productive" talks over the past two days, a claim firmly denied by Iran, which insisted that no such discussions had taken place.
Trump described the discussions as "very strong" with "major points of agreement" and said the US has paused strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure for up to five days.
However, Iran's foreign ministry has dismissed the claim that any talks are currently underway, with Iranian state media also denying the existence of talks.
Trump believes Iran "wants to make a deal badly" and has hinted at high-level talks, suggesting that discussions may be taking place at the highest level of Iran's leadership.
The US President also spoke on how the US would handle Iran's enriched uranium if a deal were to be reached, saying "it's very easy. If we have a deal with them, we're going down and we'll take it ourselves."
