Trump is 'Waiting in Vain' for Tehran's Phone Call to Start Talks - Iranian Foreign Ministry

The statement comes in response to US Department of State spokesperson Morgan Ortagus, who earlier said that President Donald Trump is waiting for a phone call from the Iranian government about whether the Islamic Republic wants to start talks.

Iranian authorities won't call Washington to beg for negotiations, spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry Abbas Mousavi stated on Sunday.

"They [the US] have long been expecting this call from Iran, but all their expectation is in vain", he said as cited by state television on their Telegram channel.

According to Mousavi, Iran will not initiate negotiations while the US is putting pressure on Tehran in the form of "economic terrorism" in violation of international laws.

In the meantime, the US has also increased its military presence in the Middle East and started forming a maritime coalition to patrol the waters near the Iranian border amid several incidents with oil tankers.

Iranian soldiers take part in the "National Persian Gulf day" in the Strait of Hormuz, on April 30, 2019

© AFP 2023 / ATTA KENARE

US-Iranian ties have been deteriorating since 8 May 2018, when Washington unilaterally left the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), and imposed several rounds of economic sanctions against Tehran.

Precisely one year later, the Islamic Republic suspended some of its nuclear obligations under the deal, including uranium enrichment limits.