US-Iran Talks Resume After Trump Threatens Annihilation

Senior United States and Iranian officials have resumed diplomatic talks in New York for the first time in more than three months, as President Donald Trump warned Tehran to either reach an agreement or face “annihilation.”

US special envoy Steve Witkoff held lengthy indirect talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Tuesday through mediators, marking the highest-level contact between the two sides since a June ceasefire quickly broke down.

Details of the discussions, which lasted several hours, were not immediately disclosed and no major breakthrough was reported.

Iranian media said Araghchi reiterated Tehran’s broader demands, including the unfreezing of Iranian assets, an end to the US naval blockade and a halt to conflicts involving what Iran describes as its “resistance fronts.”

It remained unclear whether the demand covered Yemen, where Iran-backed Houthi rebels have made significant gains and disrupted Saudi oil exports since the previous round of talks.

Witkoff said on X(formerly Twitter) that the latest discussions were indirect, with mediators moving between the US and Iranian delegations.

Today, on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, we engaged in lengthy talks with the Iranian delegation through the mediators, who shuttled between the two sides throughout the day. They successfully completed a round of discussions that we hope will prove…

— Special Envoy Steve Witkoff (@SEPeaceMissions) September 22, 2026

Trump, speaking at a meeting with Arab leaders on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, warned that the situation would have a rapid outcome if no agreement was reached.

He said the choices facing Iran were to make a deal or see the conflict end very quickly.

“It’s going to go one way or another,” Trump said in a meeting with Arab leaders 

“It’s either we’re going to make a deal or it will end very, very quickly. So quickly your head will spin.”

Jordan’s King Abdullah was seen crossing his fingers in videos posted online when asked whether an agreement with Iran was possible.

US Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack said the participants had reached a broad consensus that a way forward was needed, without offering details of the talks.

“There’s a consensus that we need a way forward. That’s the only consensus,” Tom Barrack, told reporters after the meeting. 

Diplomatic engagement between Washington and Tehran had stalled in recent months as uncertainty surrounding the war increased.

The Strait of Hormuz remains unsettled, with tankers operating through waters facing drone threats while the United States and Iran continue to exchange sporadic strikes.