Trump says Iran made a major energy-related gift to the US

By Bo Erickson

WASHINGTON, March 24 (Reuters) – President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that Iran had made a major concession to the United States on energy, calling it a “positive development” but without providing details.

Trump claimed that the gift was related to the Strait of Hormuz, an oil transit route that the United States has difficulty keeping open.

“They gave us a gift, and it arrived today, and it was a ‘huge, tremendous amount of money,'” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.

“It wasn’t nuclear, it was oil and gas, and it was a beautiful thing they did.”

Reiterating that he felt the United States had already won the war, Trump stated that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was disappointed that the campaign ended so quickly.

“Pete didn’t want this to be resolved,” he said, but did not elaborate.

Trump said the United States was talking to the “right people” in Iran to reach an agreement to end hostilities and that the Iranians were eager to reach an agreement.

“We’re in negotiations right now” on Iran, he said, but did not elaborate specifically on whether US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner were planning talks this week. ​Witkoff said Kushner, Vice President J.D. Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio were involved in the negotiations.

Pakistan has said it is willing to host talks between the US and Iran.

(Reporting by Bo Erickson, Doina Chiacu and Steve Holland; Editing by David Ljunggren Editing by David Ljunggren)