US, Iran signal talks to avert military conflict amid tensions in the Gulf
By Al Jazeera, February 1, 2026Iran and the United States have confirmed opening lines of communication to work out a deal and avoid military action as tensions rise in the Gulf and regional powers ramp up diplomacy to prevent conflict.
US President Donald Trump told reporters on Saturday, January 31, 2026, that Iran was “seriously talking” with Washington, hours after Iran’s top national security official said arrangements for negotiations were progressing.
Trump, speaking on board Air Force One, said he believed Iran should agree to a deal with “no nuclear weapons” but that he did not know if Tehran would sign up to such an accord.
“But they are talking to us,” he said. “Seriously talking to us.”
He also referred to the US “armada” heading towards Iran, led by the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier, saying “we do have very big, powerful ships heading in that direction”.
“I hope they negotiate something that’s acceptable,” he added.
Hours earlier, the head of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, Ali Larijani, said Tehran was preparing for talks with the US.
“Contrary to the artificially manufactured media war narrative, the formation of a framework for negotiations is progressing,” he wrote on X.
Larijani did not provide further details.
The developments come amid weeks of rising tensions, with Trump repeatedly threatening to attack Iran over a crackdown on recent anti-government protests, and his push to curtail Iran’s nuclear programme.
Earlier this week, Trump said the US vessels being sent to Iran were ready to use “violence, if necessary”, if Iran refused to sit down for talks on its nuclear programme.
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) also warned Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on Friday over its plans to hold a two-day naval exercise in the Strait of Hormuz, a Gulf maritime passage critical to global trade.
“Any unsafe and unprofessional behaviour near US forces, regional partners or commercial vessels increases risks of collision, escalation, and destabilisation,” CENTCOM said in a statement.
Senior Iranian leaders have said they are open to negotiations with Washington, but only once Trump stops threatening to attack the country.
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi also hit back on Saturday, saying in a social media post that the US military, operating off Iran’s shores, “is now attempting to dictate how our Powerful Armed Forces should conduct target practice on their own turf”.
“CENTCOM is also requesting ‘professionalism’ from a national military the U.S. Government has listed as a ‘terrorist organisation’, all while recognising the right of that same ‘terrorist organisation’ to conduct military drills!” Araghchi wrote.
The US designated the IRGC, an elite branch of the Iranian military, as a “terrorist” organisation in 2019, during Trump’s first term in office.
Araghchi added, “The presence of outside forces in our region has always caused the exact opposite of what is declared: promoting escalation instead of de-escalation.”