A series of backchannel contacts involving Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Pakistan helped shape Donald Trump’s decision to hold back planned strikes on Iran, US media reported on Monday (local time), even as Iranian officials denied any negotiations were taking place.
The contacts came as Trump’s 48-hour ultimatum to Iran – reopen the Strait of Hormuz or face strikes on power infrastructure – was nearing its deadline. Gulf states, facing direct exposure to any escalation, drove much of the behind-the-scenes push for a pause.
The four foreign ministers did not meet at a convenient hour. They convened before dawn in Riyadh on Thursday, according to The Wall Street Journal, working against the clock to identify a path out of the conflict. Their first problem was not finding a formula – it was finding someone on the Iranian side to present it to. Israel’s killing of national security chief Ali Larijani earlier that week had removed the one Iranian official widely regarded as capable of conducting back-channel engagement with outside powers, leaving the mediators searching for an alternative entry point into Tehran’s decision-making structure.
Egyptian intelligence officials established a direct channel with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, The Wall Street Journal reported. Oman pursued a separate track, with its foreign minister saying Muscat was “working intensively to put in place safe passage arrangements for the Strait of Hormuz.”
The New York Times reported that Washington and Tehran were exchanging messages through intermediaries, with no direct talks between the two sides. US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are leading the American outreach, according to reports.
The White House declined to comment on specifics. “These are sensitive diplomatic discussions, and the United States will not negotiate through the news media,” Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told news agency IANS.
Iran officially denied negotiations were underway. Mediators, meanwhile, expressed scepticism about a quick resolution. The Wall Street Journal said the two sides remain far apart on Iran’s nuclear programme and on security guarantees. Early discussions have touched on possible meetings in Pakistan or Turkey, but no meeting has been confirmed.