What They’re Saying About the U.S.–Iran Talks—June 23, 2026
U.S.
President Donald Trump | Comments to Journalists
[Question: “The Iranians are saying there’s no scheduled visit for the IAEA inspectors. Is that part of your agreement?”]
“They’re wrong, they know they’re wrong. They told us inside, and we have it down, 100%, inspections and if they were right, I would cancel the meetings right now.”
[Question: “When will those inspectors actually be on the ground?”]
“At the appropriate time. There’s no rush, but they will be on the ground at the appropriate time.”
President Donald Trump | Comments to Journalists
“We have Iran in a position that nobody has ever had. This should have been done for 47 years by other presidents, and we have Iran in a position where their military has been totally wiped out, their leadership has been wiped out, their radar has been wiped out, everything has been wiped out. They have not a good negotiating position, but despite that, and money that will be taken out of Iran is going to go to our farmers. To give corn, soy beans, wheat to Iran. Because they have a hunger problem, they have a food problem, they have a medicine problem, they got a lot of problems. And they have an inflation, their inflation now just hit 300%, so they have a lot of problems.”
President Donald Trump | Comments to Journalists
“You want to see trouble, let them have a nuclear weapon. We are doing very well with Iran. They have been decimated, and we are making a deal with them, and we will see how that all goes. And right now, as you probably heard yesterday, we had 19 million barrels of oil come off, and that’s the biggest in the history of the Strait, the Hormuz Strait. Our stock market is through the roof and oil prices are tumbling. We actually hit for a moment today, in fact, I think it’s going to break at 70 dollars a barrel and that’s lower than we were when we started. And that’s amazing, and the big thing is Iran will not have a nuclear weapon.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio | Comments to Journalists
“I think a careful reading of the MOU will see when we talk about, for example, a complete end to hostilities in the entire region, well, that’s not possible. You can’t have the end of hostilities and conflict in the region as long as Iranian proxies are launching missiles and drones from Iraq and are participating in terrorism, like Hamas did and like Hezbollah did. So I do think it is covered by the MOU, and it is an issue that will be gotten to at the appropriate time in these negotiations.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio | Comments to Journalists
“If Iran makes a decision, if its leadership makes a decision, that they want to be a country instead of a revolutionary movement that exports terror, they’re going to have an opportunity to do incredible things in Iran. I’m not promising you that’s the choice they’re going to make. I am saying if that’s the choice that they make then there will be opportunities, and those opportunities could include investment. As you have seen other countries in this region benefit from foreign direct investment, it won’t be our investment, it won’t be our government money. But I think that is something that is going to have to depend on progress made on a host of other security issues that have to be confronted in the days to come.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio Comments to Journalists
[Question: “Can the U.S. and allies guarantee freedom of navigation in the strait?”]
“Well that’s the law, it’s an international waterway. No country is allowed to charge tolls or fees on an international waterway, that’s existing international law. That’s the way it is in international waterways all over the world, and that’s the way we will expect it will be here. So I don’t think we have anybody to convince around here in that regard. I think all the countries in this region would agree with us.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio | Comments to Journalists
[Question: “Lebanese and Israeli officials are meeting in Washington as we speak. Is it your position that that process should be separate from [an] Iran peace deal?”]
“Well that process is separate. It’s separate because Lebanon is a sovereign country. It has a government, and when it comes to Lebanon, what’s happening inside of Lebanon, we’re going to negotiate a deal directly with the Lebanese government. I spoke to President [Joseph] Aoun along with the vice president a few moments ago, I spoke to him on Friday. Their people are there on the ground directly. Now there’s an Iranian issue with regards to Lebanon, and that is their support and sponsorship of Hezbollah. And so that factor will be discussed as part of our conversations with the Iranians. But as far as the future of Lebanon, the future of Lebanon belongs to the Lebanese people through their sovereign elected government.”
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt | Press Interview
“It is ludicrous to assume that President Trump would ever sign on to a deal that compares, in any way, shape, or form, to the disastrous JCPOA that Barack Hussein Obama signed on to. They gave the Iranian regime pallets of cash. This deal is going to ensure that it benefits not just America’s national security interest but the American people as well. President Trump will make sure of it.”
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt | Press Interview
“Of course he has been up front with the American people in recognizing what’s going on Iran has been a short temporary disruption, but, however, as the memorandum of understanding was recently signed, we have seen oil prices fall just as President Trump said that they would and they will. They will fall back to the levels they were before Iran began, but it’s very important to our nation, our national security, and the American people that the rogue Iranian regime was never allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon. President Trump has been very clear about that for decades. Anyone who voted for him understands that. So now we’re in this 60 day negotiating period at the direction of the president, headed up by the vice president, Special Envoy Witkoff, Jared Kushner. Trust in them. This is a team who made the impossible possible with respect to bringing the hostages home from Gaza. Nobody thought that could happen. It happened under the president, the vice president, and the national security team’s leadership. So they’ll continue to negotiate, ensuring that we have a final deal that meets the needs of the American people in our country. President Trump, I know, will never sign on to a deal that does not serve this country and our national security interest. He is always looking out for America first.”
U.S. Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz | Press Interview
“This is a step forward that no other administration has ever been able to do, and that’s have direct talks. None of these senior members of this genocidal regime are good guys by any means— they certainly wouldn’t pass an FBI background check. No one expects that, but at the end of the day our administration is taking a pragmatic approach. This is who the regime has put forward to deal with, and they remain and we remain focused on the goal of no nuclear weapons, period. And what we’ve seen in the past is policy drift in terms of what our aims are. The president is laser focused. The American people, not just the American people but the entire world, with UN Security Council resolution after UN Security Council resolution for decades saying Iran can’t have a nuke. And we need to give this process a chance. We need to give peace a chance. And as the vice president has said, perhaps we can finally turn the page to a new Middle East. Like President Trump did with the Abraham Accords [in] his first term, let’s give this a chance [in] his second term.”
U.S. Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz | Press interview
“This is the beginning of a process, and even after the first round we have Iran now allowing inspectors back in. The other flaw from Obama’s Iran deal was that the inspectors—Iran got to dictate where the inspectors went. It’s like a criminal dictating when the parole officer comes in. And I have every confidence that this team will drive anytime, anywhere inspections. And where are we now? We have gas falling cheaper than it was under the Biden administration, you have oil prices falling around the globe, you have our economy that is setting records. The stock market is setting records, and we have a president who will always give diplomacy a chance backed by our military strength. I think that’s a very strong place to be.”
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries | X
“Pete Hegseth wants an additional $80 billion in taxpayer money to pay for Operation Epic Failure in Iran. Get lost.”
Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Tom Cotton | Press Interview
“As we’ve seen in multiple conflicting reports, what actually happened versus what Qatar or Iran says happened is not always the case. But I agree most importantly with what the president said over the weekend—that we’re not going to restrain Israel from defending itself against a bloodthirsty terrorist cult, Hezbollah, that has a lot of blood of Americans on its hands as well. Iran is going to have to restrain its terrorist proxy if there’s going to be any semblance of peace in Lebanon. Remember, Hugh, this comes at a time when the president of Lebanon has traveled to Washington and met with Secretary Rubio, who is doing great work on this front as well. And [President Aoun] said that Hezbollah is not Lebanon and it does not speak for Lebanon. It is a terrorist organization that has seized in part the reins and power inside of that country. But the Lebanese president himself, like I suspect most normal Lebanese, want their country back. They don’t want to be a cat’s paw for Iran.”
House Armed Services Committee Ranking Member Adam Smith | Press Interview
“What did all of those lives lost, and all of that disruption to the Middle East and to the global economy accomplish? If you’re now saying it’s great news that we’re kind of halfway back to where we were before the war started? Yeah no, it’s good news compared to where we were at prior to this, with the Strait of Hormuz shut down, the global economy in chaos, youn know missiles being lobbed at a dozen different countries. But why did we start the war in the first place just to get halfway back to where we were before it started. So that’s the concern, yes, I agree with you I’m not happy about the situation that President Trump put us in by starting this war. But finding a way to end the war is definitely better than where we were at a week or two ago.”
Sen. Chuck Grassley | Floor Remarks
“Last week, President Trump signed a deal to end the hostilities between the US and Iran. That deal could be called a memorandum of understanding as so named, or you can look at it as a letter of intent. Let’s remember what Operation Epic Fury was all about—preventing the Iranian regime, which has chanted ‘Death to America’ for 47 years, from having a nuclear weapon. Death to America is Death to Americans. We have seen it as the alert threat is up—if you had the secure briefings I had you would be very thoughtful about what can come from Tehran to affect Americans. . . . So with the peace agreement at hand, the devil is in the details. While key details are set to be finalizing within 60 days, Congress will and must keep a very close eye to ensure that Iran is held accountable every step of the way. . . . So we shouldn’t take anything at face value, we must verify, and we should judge this agreement by what Iran does, not what it promises. Because in a situation like this, pressure alone doesn’t guarantee results—only accountability guarantees results. And you always have to keep in the back of your mind that people in that part of the world considers us in the Western world as infidels, and you don’t have to keep an agreement with infidels.”
IRAN
President Masoud Pezeshkian | Comments to Press
“If we did not have our missiles, which are for our self-defense, Israel and America would have plowed through Iran the way Gaza was plowed through, and they would have shown no mercy to the old or the young. They speak of human rights. It is a great lie. If we could not defend ourselves, they certainly would not have shown mercy to our country and would have destroyed our power. Therefore, we will never, under any circumstances, negotiate with anyone over our defensive capabilities.”
President Masoud Pezeshkian | X
“The effectiveness of the talks depends on full commitment to the agreed obligations and their precise implementation. Progress on this path will be measured by practical adherence to accepted responsibilities. Statements outside the agreed text do not help advance the negotiations.”
IRAN & OMAN
Iranian and Omani Governments | Joint Statement
“The Sultanate of Oman and the Islamic Republic of Iran held discussions in Muscat during the visit of H.E. Dr. Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Speaker of the Islamic Consultative Assembly of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and H.E. Dr. Abbas Araghchi, Minister of Foreign Affairs. During the visit, the Iranian delegation had an audience with His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik and held discussions with H.E. Sayyid Badr Albusaidi, the Foreign Minister. The Sultanate of Oman reaffirmed its support to the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding signed between the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran and the importance of sustaining dialogue and coordination in support of its successful implementation. The Islamic Republic of Iran and the Sultanate of Oman as the Coastal States of the Strait of Hormuz, reaffirm their commitment to the safe passage through the Strait, in line with applicable international law, while emphasizing their sovereignty and sovereign rights over their territorial waters in the Strait of Hormuz. The two sides discussed matters relating to the Strait of Hormuz, in accordance with the provisions of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding. They agreed to maintain their dialogue on this issue through a joint working group between the two foreign ministries in order to reach agreement on the future administration of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz and the services that will be provided in this regard and the costs associated with them in accordance with international standards. In this context, they have also agreed to hold discussions with the littoral States in the region, and with any other relevant parties. All arrangements related to the Strait of Hormuz must fully respect the sovereignty and sovereign rights of the two Coastal States of the Strait. The Sultanate of Oman and the Islamic Republic of Iran reaffirmed their commitment to maintaining the Strait of Hormuz as a secure and open waterway for international navigation. The two sides emphasized the importance of continued cooperation to promote maritime safety, freedom of navigation, and regional stability.”
ISRAEL
“IDF soldiers identified four Hezbollah terrorists, operating under civilian cover, riding a bulldozer and a motorcycle who had crossed into the security zone and approached the soldiers. The soldiers conducted warning fire. After the terrorists continued to approach, additional fire was conducted in order to remove the threat.”
Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter | Statement
“We all support President Trump’s vision of ensuring that Iran no longer has nuclear capabilities, ballistic missiles or the ability to funnel money to its proxies to threaten its neighbors and maintain its regional hegemony. . . . I fear that the concept of ‘deconfliction’ is misplaced. Israel is not in conflict with Lebanon. Therefore, deconfliction is not the issue. All that is needed is coordination with Lebanon. The only issue is Hezbollah. Hezbollah must be defeated and removed from the equation. Instead, there is a danger that Hezbollah has received a boost. It certainly feels stronger and bolder. . . . We agreed to a ceasefire that was conditional on Hezbollah withdrawing north. Is this agreement still binding? We cannot afford commitments that fade away. And it is important to be clear: Israel will act against immediate and evolving threats to its citizens and soldiers. Iran is expected to benefit from a flow of funds under the MOU. How do we ensure that these funds do not find their way to Hezbollah? If we cannot guarantee that, then all the words we agree to here will make no difference, because Hezbollah will simply rebuild itself.”
Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter | Statement
“We are in a train wreck . . . [When the direct talks between Israel and Lebanon began,] we all got on the same train. We sat in the same car and traveled to the same destination, with the United States serving as the locomotive. The train was heading in a very clear direction: full peace between the countries, Iran and its malign influence out of Lebanon, the disarmament of Hezbollah, and peace and security for Lebanon and Israel. Today, this train is in danger of derailing. I hope we can get it back on track. The basic premise [of these talks] was that Iran was not involved, and the main discussion is about Lebanon and Hezbollah—not about the extent to which Iran can restrain Hezbollah. That is not Iran’s role. Its role is to get out of Lebanon. The role of the Lebanese government is to exercise its sovereignty. Sovereignty means that Iran will no longer be involved . . . in Lebanon.’”
PAKISTAN
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif | Comments to Journalists
“I shall be undertaking a visit to Tehran next week, Inshallah, to pay our respects to the late Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and to reaffirm and reassure Pakistan's solidarity with our brotherly people of Iran.”
Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar | Press Interview
“Some elements never wanted a US-Iran peace agreement to happen. The very moment the agreement was reached, the purpose of the Israeli bombing in Lebanon was to provoke both parties and halt the process. Wisdom must prevail; the world should play its role in stopping Israel.”
Foreign Ministry | X
“Foreign Minister of Iran, H.E. Seyyed Abbas Araghchi arrived in Islamabad today as part of the delegation accompanying the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, H.E. Dr. Masoud Pezeshkian, on his State Visit to Pakistan. Upon arrival at Nur Khan Airbase, Foreign Minister Araghchi was warmly received by Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar. Pakistan and Iran share strong brotherly ties, deeply rooted in history, faith, and culture. The leadership and people of Pakistan extend a warm welcome to Foreign Minister Araghchi and the Iranian delegation to Islamabad.”
GULF STATES
Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi | X
“Welcomed Iran’s Speaker of Parliament HE Dr. Ghalibaf and FM Dr. Araghchi in Muscat this evening. Constructive discussions on the recent Iran-US MOU, especially the Strait of Hormuz paragraph. We affirmed commitment to international law and toll-free safe passage.”
“Unfortunately, this is not the first time that the Israeli Prime Minister has created a state of escalation in the region, through the continued occupation and expansion into Lebanese and Syrian territories, and the failure to commit to withdrawal from the Gaza Strip or to fulfill obligations related to agreements. In light of these developments, the State of Qatar’s priority remains clear: respect for the sovereignty of states, de-escalation, and working as much as possible to contain these conflicts, in a manner that restores stability to the region and spares its peoples further suffering.”
“Iran is a neighboring state, and dialogue with it remains a necessity to ensure the security and stability of the region, despite the fact that what has occurred is unacceptable toward the State of Qatar and the rest of our brothers in the Gulf Cooperation Council states. The Gulf Cooperation Council states are working in direct and continuous coordination, with a shared vision that seeks to address disputes through diplomatic and peaceful means, and to build a higher level of trust and cooperation.”
“The State of Qatar emphasizes the importance of adhering to ensuring freedom of navigation, removing any threats that impede safe passage, and activating direct communication mechanisms and a hotline to contain any disputes that may arise in the future. In this context, the State of Qatar continues its consultations with the Gulf Cooperation Council states and the Sultanate of Oman, based on a shared Gulf position affirming the right of all states bordering the Arabian Gulf to safe and free passage, while preserving regional stability and the interests of their peoples.”
EUROPE
French President Emmanuel Macron | X
“I held discussions with Lebanese Army Commander Joseph Aoun, Prime Minister-designate Nawaf Salam, and Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri. I reaffirmed to each of them France’s commitment to Lebanon’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. The establishment of a robust ceasefire—which must be respected by all—must pave the way for a simultaneous process involving the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Lebanese territory and the redeployment of the Lebanese Armed Forces, in order to ensure the State’s exclusive control over the use of force. France stands ready to provide concrete support for this process and to mobilize the international community in the coming weeks—alongside the Lebanese government—to support the Lebanese Armed Forces and address the needs of displaced populations.”
UN
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres | X
“Conflict in the Middle East has unleashed the mother of all energy shocks. For many developing countries, this is not just an energy crisis. It's a debt, food & development shock. Any peace agreement would bring much needed relief, but the impacts are likely to be long-lasting.”
Receive Iran News in Your Inbox.
Eye on Iran is a news summary from United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI), a section 501(c)(3) organization. Eye on Iran is available to subscribers on a daily basis or weekly basis.