What did Trump receive as a valuable gift from Iran?

US President Donald Trump said that Iran has given America a "gift" worth "a huge amount of money". It is mainly related to the Strait of Hormuz, which has been virtually closed since the US-Israeli attack that began on February 28 and has caused oil and gas prices to skyrocket worldwide.

The US leader insisted that the gift was not about Iran's nuclear program, but about "oil and gas". However, he did not reveal what it was specifically.

The cryptic comment came at a time when Trump had suspended his threat to attack Iranian power plants for five days the previous day and decided to return to the negotiating table for a ceasefire agreement. Although Tehran has denied participating in any kind of ceasefire talks.

What Trump said

Talking to reporters at the White House, Trump said, "They did something amazing yesterday. They gave us a gift and that gift arrived today. It was a huge gift that was worth a lot. I won’t tell you what it was, but it was a very important gift.

“It means one thing to me — we’re talking to the right parties,” he added.

The US commander-in-chief said that the “gift” from Tehran was related to oil and gas as the two countries were moving toward a possible ceasefire. He called it “very significant,” without elaborating.

When asked if it was related to the Strait of Hormuz — through which about a fifth of the world’s oil supplies pass — Trump replied with a resounding “yes.”

“It was related to the movement and the channel,” he said.

The US president insisted that the “gift” was not related to Iran’s nuclear programme, but he repeated his claim that the Iranian side “agreed they would never develop a nuclear weapon.”

What’s happening in Hormuz

Shortly after Trump’s claim, Iran, in a message broadcast by the International Maritime Organization, assured the safe passage of “non-hostile vessels” through the strait that connects the Persian Gulf to the rest of the world.

Iran has been saying for days that it is not targeting friendly countries, although many ships have been avoiding the route because insurance companies refuse to take the risk.

Tehran has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz since the start of the war with the US and Israel. Iranian attacks on ships have halted almost all tanker traffic.

The US last week made its first attempt at a diplomatic solution to the Strait of Hormuz problem. President Trump then called for a new international coalition to send warships to the strait, but after close U.S. allies refused to respond, Trump said the United States could handle it alone.

On Friday, he signaled that other countries would have to take responsibility as the United States planned to exit the war. Hours later, he said the waterway would somehow “open itself up.”

Ceasefire talks

Trump has not yet revealed who the United States is talking to in Tehran, saying only that it is a “top-level person.”

“We are actually talking to the right people and they are very eager to make a deal,” Trump said.

On the first day of joint U.S.-Israeli airstrikes, Iran’s former supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed, and his successor, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, has not been seen in public.

But Trump said the killing of Khamenei senior and other top Iranian officials meant “we are actually seeing regime change.” The leaders we have today are completely different from the ones we started with.

Trump said that US Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, global envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner are all involved in these talks with Iran.

However, he did not confirm whether Witkoff and Kushner are going to Pakistan to hold talks with Iran.

The report said that JD Vance could also join later if the talks go seriously. Earlier on Tuesday (March 24), Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif offered to act as a mediator to resolve the conflict.

He said that he had spoken to Iranian President Masoud Pjeshkian and promised Islamabad's help in restoring peace in the region.

Meanwhile, Trump joked that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth "doesn't want to solve this problem" because he wants to continue attacking Iranian targets.

When Trump called Hegseth to the podium, he said, "We consider ourselves part of this discussion. We discuss through bombs."

Source: NDTV.