President Trump has proposed “joint leadership” of Iran following talks with the Islamic regime.
On Monday, Mr Trump suggested the US could run the country alongside an unnamed Iranian leader.
The US President claimed peace talks had begun and there would be a “very serious form of regime change” in Iran, adding: “Maybe a joint leadership.”
The US found a leader for Venezuela after capturing its president Nicolas Maduro, and Mr Trump suggested following a similar course of action for Iran.
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The US President earlier announced the postponement of air strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure after giving the regime a 48-hour ultimatum to open the vital Strait of Hormuz.
After “very, very strong talks” about a possible ceasefire, Mr Trump said the Strait of Hormuz could be “controlled by me and the ayatollah”.
The strait’s closure has sparked global turmoil with oil prices surging.
But Mr Trump’s decision to call off the strikes saw them plunge and the FTSE 100 bounced back.
Mr Trump told reporters he would consider running the Strait of Hormuz alongside the Iranian regime
|REUTERS
Iran asserted it has held no talks with the US, despite Mr Trump’s claim that “major points of agreement have been reached.
The US President said “very strong” talks between Washington and Tehran have been held and Iran wanted “very much to make a deal”.
Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has said no such talks have taken place, posting on X: “No negotiations have been held with the US, and fake news is used to manipulate the financial and oil markets and escape the quagmire in which the US and Israel are trapped.”
An Israeli official told Reuters that Ghalibaf is fronting talks with Washington.
According to Iranian state news agency IRNA, an Iranian foreign ministry said “friendly” countries had indicated the US was calling for talks to end the war, but Iran has issued no response.
Sir Keir Starmer told MPs on Monday it was “hard to answer” how long the Iran crisis would last and Britain must brace itself for the possibility of a lengthy conflict.
The Prime Minister also insisted that the conflict was “not our war, and we are not getting dragged into this war” as he took questions from senior MPs.
He appeared before the Liaison Committee, made up of chairs of Commons select committees.
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Sir Keir Starmer said he is hopeful for a 'rapid de-escalation'
|PARLIAMENT
Mr Starmer said he welcomed reports of talks between the US and Iran, adding he hopes for a “swift de-escalation”.
He said: “I think all our focus and energy has to be in the swift de-escalation, but we’ve got to plan on the basis that it could go on for some time, and that’s the way in which we’ll plan this afternoon.”
His appearance followed Mr Trump’s announcement that he would “postpone” threatened strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure after “very good and productive” talks with Iran.
Mr Starmer told MPs the UK had been “aware” of the talks.
The US President had threatened to obliterate Iranian power plants if Tehran did not open the Strait of Hormuz to shipping by 11.45pm on Monday.