US President Donald Trump said Washington and Tehran were still conducting negotiations to end their conflict -- even as attacks intensified throughout the region, further threatening to widen the conflict into a full-blown Middle East war."We are talking to them. I think they're being serious,” Trump told reporters at the White House, referring to Iranian negotiators.“I think...they are being by far the most serious that we've seen them, but that doesn't mean we get there. We'll see what happens," he added in the July 24 comments.
Trump has often spoken of negotiations between the US and Iran, occasionally claiming a peace deal was imminent, only to have talks falter and military action to resume.Asked if he had made a decision about resumption of full-scale attacks amid media reports that he was meeting with advisers on the subject, Trump responded, “No, I haven’t.”“We're locked and loaded and ready to go. But we're talking to them, so I think while we're talking, we'll see what comes of it. I believe...They're very serious. They should be," Trump said without specifying how the talks were being conducted.Saudi-Led Forces Strike Houthi SitesHis remarks come as attacks widened through the region, with Saudi-led forces targeting Iran-backed Houthi sites in Yemen early on July 25 after the rebel group struck Saudi shipping in the Red Sea -- actions that threatened to pull Saudi ally Pakistan into the conflict."The terrorist Houthi military...targeted commercial ships in the Red Sea," Saudi military spokesman Turki al-Maliki said on X.He added that the coalition had "carried out a decisive and strong response" targeting Houthi military sites used to threaten Red Sea shipping and that the "military response is now over."The US ally said it would continue to take necessary steps to protect its shipping assets and other interests. It didn't specify the members of its coalition.
