President Trump denies offering Iran sanctions relief or release of frozen assets

U.S. President Donald Trump strongly denied reports on Monday claiming his administration offered Iran economic concessions—including sanctions relief and the release of frozen funds—in exchange for steps on its nuclear program.

How did President Trump respond to the Axios report?

Writing on his Truth Social platform, President Trump rejected a report published by the news outlet Axios, which cited anonymous US officials claiming Washington was willing to unfreeze Iranian assets and ease sanctions for nuclear commitments. "Axios just released a story that 'Trump' offered Sanctions Relief and Frozen Funds to Iran. This is untrue. I offered them NOTHING!," Trump wrote, calling the reporting a "hoax" and demanding that the outlet withdraw the article immediately.

The pushback follows Trump's formal rejection over the weekend of an Iranian proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. The Iranian plan conditioned the reopening of the strategic waterway on a seven-day regional ceasefire, the release of an estimated $12 billion in frozen assets, and an end to the US naval blockade on Iranian ports.

Where do diplomatic talks between Washington and Tehran stand?

Despite Trump's denial of economic concessions, indirect diplomatic channels remain active; Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met with Qatari mediators on Monday in New York to discuss potential frameworks for de-escalation along the Strait of Hormuz.

State news agency IRNA reported on Monday that Tehran has no further direct meetings scheduled with US officials, though President Trump noted over the weekend that he expects indirect negotiations to continue.

The ongoing conflict and closure of the Strait of Hormuz—a bottleneck carrying roughly twenty percent of the world's petroleum—have driven global crude oil prices upward, impacting domestic fuel costs in the US as political pressure builds ahead of the upcoming November midterm elections.