Iran rejects Trump’s talk of negotiation as Israel and Iran exchange air strikes

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CAIRO/WASHINGTON – Israel and Iran exchanged air strikes on March 25, as Iran’s military rejected President Donald Trump’s assertion that the US was in negotiations to end the war that has roiled energy and financial markets, saying the US is negotiating with itself.

The rejection of negotiations by the unified command of the Iranian Armed Forces, which is dominated by the hardline elite Revolutionary Guards, comes amid reports that the US has sent a 15-point plan for discussion to Tehran.

“Has the level of your inner struggle reached the stage of you (Trump) negotiating with yourself?” the top spokesman for Iran’s joint military command, Lieutenant-Colonel Ebrahim Zolfaqari, said on Iranian state TV.

“People like us can never get along with people like you. As we have always said... no one like us will make a deal with you. Not now. Not ever.”

Iran’s leadership has previously said it cannot negotiate with the US as it has attacked the country twice during high-level negotiations in the past two years.

Iran had a “very bad experience with American diplomacy”, its Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei told India Today on March 25.

There was no dialogue or negotiations with Washington as Iran’s armed forces are focused on defending the country, he added.

Four weeks into the war that has killed thousands, created the worst energy shock in history and sparked global inflation fears, there was no let-up in air strikes from Iran and Israel on March 25.

The Israel Defense Forces said in a Telegram post that it had launched a wave of strikes targeting infrastructure across Tehran.

It later said its air force had struck two naval cruise missile production sites in Tehran.

The semi-official Iranian SNN News Agency said the strikes hit a residential area in the city, with rescuers searching the rubble.

Kuwait and Saudi Arabia said they had repelled fresh drone attacks, without stating where they originated.

Drones targeted a fuel tank at Kuwait International Airport, causing a fire but no casualties, Kuwait’s Civil Aviation Authority said.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said it had launched a new wave of attacks against locations in Israel, including Tel Aviv and Kiryat Shmona, as well as US bases in Kuwait, Jordan and Bahrain, Iranian state media reported.

Mr Trump told reporters at the White House on March 24 that the US was in “negotiations” with “the right people” in Iran to end the war, adding that the Iranians wanted to reach a deal very badly.

Stocks rose and oil prices fell on March 25 on reports that the US is seeking a month-long ceasefire and had sent a 15-point plan to Iran for discussion, raising hopes for a resumption of oil exports out of the Persian Gulf.

The New York Times reported on March 24 that Washington had sent Iran a 15-point plan to end the war.

Israel’s Channel 12, quoting three sources, said the US was seeking a month-long ceasefire to discuss the 15-point plan.

A source familiar with the matter confirmed that the US had sent a plan to Iran but provided no further details.

The Israeli media outlet said the plan would include the dismantling of Iran’s nuclear programme, ceasing support for proxy groups such as Lebanon’s Hezbollah, and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

The US and Israel launched strikes on Iran on Feb 28 after saying they had failed to make enough headway in talks aimed at ending Iran’s nuclear programme, although mediator Oman said significant progress had been made.

The US struck Iran’s nuclear facilities in June 2025.

Since the start of Operation Epic Fury by the US in February, Iran has attacked countries that host US bases, struck Gulf energy infrastructure and effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, a conduit for a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas.

Iran has told the UN Security Council and the International Maritime Organization that “non-hostile vessels” may transit the Strait of Hormuz if they coordinate with the Iranian authorities, according to a note seen by Reuters on March 25.

The effective closure of the waterway has sent fuel prices soaring and disrupted global aviation.

Asia is at the front line of the fuel crisis, buying more than 80 per cent of the crude that transits the Strait of Hormuz, and governments there are scrambling to respond to fuel shortages with policies such as enforced work-from-home and stimulus measures last seen during the Covid-19 pandemic era.

Some countries have declared public holidays and closed schools.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) has agreed to a record release of around 400 million barrels of oil from strategic stockpiles to deal with the crisis, and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi asked IEA chief Fatih Birol for an additional release of oil when they met on March 25, Jiji Press reported.

Pakistan offers to hold US-Iran talks

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on March 24 that he was willing to host talks between the US and Iran on ending the war, a day after Mr Trump postponed threats to bomb Iranian power plants after what he called “productive” talks.

Pakistan has longstanding ties with neighbouring Iran and has been building a relationship with Mr Trump.

Despite reports of negotiations, the Pentagon is expected to send thousands of soldiers from the US Army’s elite 82nd Airborne Division to the Middle East, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters on March 24, adding to a massive US military build-up.

The forces will add to the 50,000 US troops already in the region and accelerate Washington’s massive military build-up there, fuelling fears of a longer conflict. REUTERS