Diplomacy & politics

Talks, statements, sanctions, nuclear policy, and government decisions.

440 entries, newest first; showing 391–420. Show all updates

Monday, March 23, 2026

5:13 AM MTOfficial
Trump postpones strikes on Iran's power plants for five days, citing 'productive' talks
Hours before his 48-hour deadline, Trump said on Truth Social that "very good and productive conversations" with Iran would continue through the week and that he had told the Pentagon to postpone strikes on Iranian power plants and energy infrastructure for five days. He later said envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner had been talking with a "respected" Iranian leader he did not name, and that any deal would see the U.S. take Iran's enriched uranium.
Associated Press, Associated Press (2) +2 more

Sunday, March 22, 2026

7:28 AM MTOfficial
Turkey's foreign minister meets Iranian, U.S. and European officials on ending the war
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan met the foreign ministers of Iran and Egypt, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas and unspecified U.S. officials to discuss steps to end the war, then spoke with Qatar's prime minister, the Saudi foreign minister and Pakistani officials, Turkey's Foreign Ministry said.
Associated Press, CBS News (AP)

Saturday, March 21, 2026

2:26 PM MTOfficial
Saudi Arabia expels Iran's military attache and four other embassy staff
Saudi Arabia's Foreign Ministry declared the Iranian embassy's military attache, his assistant and three other staff members persona non grata and gave them 24 hours to leave, saying Iran's escalation would affect current and future relations.
Associated Press, Associated Press (2)
6:45 AM MTOfficial
Twenty-two countries demand Iran stop attacking ships and end the Hormuz closure
Leaders of 22 countries, including the UAE, Bahrain, Britain, France, Germany, Japan, Canada, South Korea and Australia, condemned Iran's attacks on unarmed commercial vessels and the "de facto closure" of the strait, called on Iran to stop laying mines and comply with U.N. Security Council Resolution 2817, and urged a moratorium on attacks on civilian energy infrastructure.
CBS News, Associated Press +1 more
4:13 AM MTOfficial
Iran says an airstrike hit the Natanz enrichment site; Israel denies carrying it out
Iran's Mizan news agency said an airstrike hit the Natanz nuclear enrichment facility with no radiation leakage, and the IAEA said Iran reported no increase in off-site radiation. Israel's military said it was not responsible, and the Pentagon declined to comment.
CBS News (AP), Associated Press +1 more

Friday, March 20, 2026

4:39 PM MTOfficial
U.S. Treasury temporarily lifts sanctions on Iranian oil already at sea
OFAC's General License U authorizes the sale, delivery and offloading, including imports into the United States, of Iranian crude and petroleum products loaded on vessels by 12:01 a.m. EDT on March 20, through 12:01 a.m. EDT on April 19, 2026. The administration presented it as a way to curb soaring oil prices.
U.S. Treasury OFAC, General License U, Associated Press +1 more
3:26 PM MTOfficial
Trump says U.S. is considering 'winding down' the war as more forces deploy
In a Truth Social post Friday evening, Trump said the U.S. was "very close" to its objectives, listing keeping Iran from nuclear capability, degrading its missiles and launchers and eliminating its navy and air force, as it considers "winding down" operations. The post came as more troops and warships headed to the region and the Pentagon sought $200 billion more.
Associated Press, Associated Press (2) +1 more
12:24 PM MTOfficial
UK confirms U.S. strikes from British bases can target sites attacking Hormuz shipping
Downing Street said ministers confirmed that U.S. use of British bases for the collective self-defense of the region includes operations to degrade missile sites and capabilities being used to attack ships in the Strait of Hormuz, while repeating that Britain would not be drawn into the wider war.
Associated Press, CBS News
8:02 AM MTOfficial
Trump calls NATO allies 'cowards' for not helping reopen the Strait of Hormuz
In a Truth Social post, Trump called NATO "A PAPER TIGER" without the United States and its members "COWARDS" for not sending forces to reopen the strait, declaring the war "Militarily WON" and the closure "the single reason for the high oil prices."
CBS News, Al Jazeera

Wednesday, March 18, 2026

2:33 PM MTOfficial
Qatar expels Iran's military and security attaches after Ras Laffan attack
Qatar's Foreign Ministry declared the Iranian embassy's military and security attaches and their office staff persona non grata and gave them 24 hours to leave, citing repeated Iranian attacks.
Associated Press, Associated Press (2) +1 more

Tuesday, March 17, 2026

5:35 PM MTOfficial
Projectile hits Bushehr nuclear plant grounds; IAEA says no damage or injuries reported
Rosatom chief Alexey Likhachev said a strike hit near the metrology building at the Bushehr plant, close to the operating unit, and Iran's atomic energy agency said no part of the plant was harmed. The IAEA said Iran told it a projectile hit the premises Tuesday evening with no damage or injuries, and Director General Rafael Grossi urged maximum restraint.
Associated Press, Associated Press (2) +1 more
9:26 AM MTOfficial
Trump says NATO allies refused Hormuz mission and the U.S. needs no one's help
Trump said most NATO allies had told him they did not want to get involved in securing the Strait of Hormuz and posted that the U.S. no longer needs help from NATO, Japan, Australia or South Korea: 'WE DO NOT NEED THE HELP OF ANYONE!' Earlier Tuesday, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said 'nobody is ready to put their people in harm's way' in the strait.
Associated Press, CBS News +1 more
7:55 AM MTConfirmed
Top U.S. counterterrorism official Joe Kent resigns, says Iran posed no imminent threat
National Counterterrorism Center Director Joe Kent posted a resignation letter on X saying he could not 'in good conscience' support the war, that Iran 'posed no imminent threat to our nation' and that the U.S. started the war due to pressure from Israel and its American lobby.
Associated Press, CBS News

Sunday, March 15, 2026

6:28 PM MTOfficial
Trump says he demanded about seven oil-dependent nations join a Hormuz coalition
Speaking aboard Air Force One, Trump said he had 'demanded' that about seven countries reliant on Middle East oil help police the Strait of Hormuz, declining to name them. In a Financial Times interview he warned that a negative response would be 'very bad for the future of NATO.'
Associated Press, CBS News +2 more
8:50 AM MTOfficial
Araghchi says Iran sees no reason to talk to U.S., keeps Hormuz shut to U.S. allies
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told CBS' Face the Nation that Iran never asked for a ceasefire or negotiations and sees 'no reason' to talk with the Americans, but is open to talks with countries seeking safe passage through Hormuz. He said the strait is closed only to the U.S. and its allies and that Iran's nuclear material lies under rubble with no plan to recover it.
Associated Press, CBS News +1 more

Saturday, March 14, 2026

8:17 AM MTOfficial
Trump says many countries will send warships to Hormuz, urges China, Japan and U.K.
In a Truth Social post, Trump said many countries would join the U.S. in sending warships to keep the Strait of Hormuz open and named China, France, Japan, South Korea and the U.K. as nations he hoped would help. He said the U.S. would keep 'bombing the hell out of the shoreline' and shooting Iranian boats out of the water.
CBS News, Associated Press +1 more

Thursday, March 12, 2026

6:32 PM MTConfirmed
U.S. temporarily lets buyers take Russian oil already at sea to ease supply crunch
The Treasury Department issued a one-month license authorizing delivery and sale of Russian crude and petroleum products loaded onto ships on or before March 12. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the narrow measure covers only oil in transit; analysts had estimated about 125 million barrels were at sea.
CBS News, Associated Press +1 more
7:18 AM MTOfficial
Mojtaba Khamenei, in first statement, says the Hormuz 'lever' must stay in use
In a statement read by a state TV anchor rather than by him, Iran's new supreme leader said "the lever of closing the Strait of Hormuz must certainly continue to be used," that attacks on U.S. bases in the region would continue, and that Gulf states should shut those bases down. He said Iran had studied opening "other fronts" and would take compensation from the enemy or "destroy its assets to the same extent."
Associated Press, Associated Press (2) +3 more
5:09 AM MTOfficial
Israel says it struck Iran's Taleghan 2 nuclear facility at Parchin again
Israel's military said it hit the Taleghan 2 facility at Parchin "in recent days." Israel had destroyed the site in an October 2024 airstrike, and satellite photos earlier this year had raised concerns Iran was working to restore it; Vantor imagery dated March 11 showed damaged buildings.
Associated Press

Wednesday, March 11, 2026

1:43 PM MTConfirmed
UN Security Council demands Iran halt attacks on Gulf neighbors in 13-0 vote
The Security Council voted 13-0, with China and Russia abstaining, for a Bahrain-drafted resolution demanding an immediate end to Iranian attacks on Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE and condemning any Iranian move to obstruct navigation through the Strait of Hormuz. A Russian draft urging all sides to halt hostilities, without naming any country, failed to get the nine votes needed.
Associated Press, CBS News (AFP) +2 more

Monday, March 9, 2026

1:39 PM MTOfficial
Trump and Putin discuss the Iran war in an hourlong call, Kremlin says
Kremlin adviser Yuri Ushakov said Putin offered "a few ideas aimed at a quick political and diplomatic settlement" of the Iran conflict, drawing on his talks with Gulf leaders and Iran's president, in a call of about an hour that also touched on Venezuela and the oil market. Trump confirmed the call and said he told Putin he could help most by ending the war in Ukraine.
Associated Press, CBS News +1 more
11:43 AM MTOfficial
IAEA chief says strikes hit Natanz and Isfahan nuclear sites but damage appears minor
IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi told reporters in Paris that the campaign had caused "a couple" of impacts at Natanz and one at Isfahan, close to a tunnel, and called the damage "not a very major one." He did not say when the sites were hit or by whom.
CBS News (AP)

Sunday, March 8, 2026

8:42 PM MTOfficial
U.S. orders nonessential diplomats and families to leave Saudi Arabia
The State Department put the U.S. mission in Saudi Arabia on "ordered departure" as Iranian attacks on the kingdom escalated, and on Monday extended the order to the consulate in Adana, Turkey. That left 10 U.S. embassies and consulates in the region on reduced staffing, the largest drawdown since the 2003 Iraq war, AP reported.
Associated Press, Associated Press (2) +1 more
3:21 PM MTConfirmed
Iran names Mojtaba Khamenei supreme leader, succeeding his slain father
Iran's Assembly of Experts said in a statement carried by state TV that it had chosen Mojtaba Khamenei, 56, the second son of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as the Islamic Republic's third supreme leader. The Revolutionary Guard, President Masoud Pezeshkian and Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf quickly pledged their support.
Al Jazeera, Associated Press +1 more

Saturday, March 7, 2026

10:17 AM MTReported
Third U.S. carrier, the USS George H.W. Bush, is set to deploy to the Middle East
The USS George H.W. Bush carrier strike group is primed to deploy to the Middle East after finishing pre-deployment exercises off Norfolk, a U.S. official told CBS News. It is expected to overlap with the USS Gerald R. Ford, now in the Red Sea, and the USS Abraham Lincoln, already in the region.
CBS News
12:27 AM MTOfficial
Pezeshkian apologizes to Gulf states, says Iran will halt strikes on them unless attacked
In a prerecorded address on state TV, President Masoud Pezeshkian apologized to neighboring countries Iran had attacked and said forces should stop firing at them unless attacks on Iran came from their territory. He called the U.S. demand for unconditional surrender a "dream that they should take to their grave."
Associated Press, Associated Press (2) +3 more

Friday, March 6, 2026

7:12 PM MTConfirmed
U.S. uses emergency powers to rush bomb sales to Israel without congressional review
The State Department approved the sale of 12,000 1,000-pound bombs to Israel late Friday, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio declaring an emergency to waive congressional review. A revised list released Saturday showed at least $650 million in expedited munitions, including general-purpose bombs worth $151 million and $209 million and critical munitions worth $298 million.
Associated Press, CBS News
7:02 AM MTConfirmed
Trump says there will be no deal with Iran except "unconditional surrender"
President Trump wrote on Truth Social that "There will be no deal with Iran except UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!" and said the U.S. and allies would rebuild Iran after it chose a "GREAT & ACCEPTABLE" leader. The Dow fell more than 900 points and Brent crude broke $90 a barrel after the post.
CNBC, Al Jazeera

Thursday, March 5, 2026

6:15 PM MTConfirmed
U.S. Treasury temporarily lets India buy sanctioned Russian oil to ease prices
The Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control issued a license allowing Russian crude and petroleum products already at sea to be offloaded in India from March 5 to April 4, applying only to oil bought by an Indian company and delivered to an Indian port. U.S. crude futures had climbed above $80 that afternoon.
CBS News, Associated Press +1 more
2:39 PM MTConfirmed
House narrowly rejects war powers resolution on Iran, 212-219
The House voted 212-219 against a war powers resolution to halt U.S. attacks on Iran without congressional approval, with four Democrats joining all but two Republicans to defeat it, a day after the Senate rejected a similar measure.
Associated Press, Associated Press (2) +1 more

Matching entries by day

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Confidence

Monday, March 23, 2026

Sunday, March 22, 2026

Saturday, March 21, 2026

Friday, March 20, 2026

Wednesday, March 18, 2026

Tuesday, March 17, 2026

Sunday, March 15, 2026

Saturday, March 14, 2026

Thursday, March 12, 2026

Wednesday, March 11, 2026

Monday, March 9, 2026

Sunday, March 8, 2026

Saturday, March 7, 2026

Friday, March 6, 2026

Thursday, March 5, 2026