President Donald Trump stated on his Truth Social platform on Tuesday that Iran has “fully and permanently agreed to the highest level of nuclear inspections” and to keeping the Strait of Hormuz open. He linked these commitments to the continuation of negotiations and said that without them, talks would have ceased. The announcement, which also detailed that any unfrozen Iranian assets would be held in a US-supervised escrow account and used exclusively to purchase American food and medical supplies, came as technical discussions between the two sides were set to resume in Switzerland.

Viewed from Washington, the declarations represent significant concessions by Tehran and a validation of the administration’s pressure campaign. Vice President JD Vance earlier spoke of “remarkable progress” in the Swiss-mediated talks, including an Iranian agreement to re-invite International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors. However, Tehran’s foreign ministry spokesman, Esmail Baghaei, told the official IRNA news agency that Iran had neither met the IAEA nor agreed on arrangements to inspect nuclear facilities damaged during the recent war. Iranian state-linked media described Trump’s claims as unsubstantiated and his threats as empty, while highlighting that any released funds would flow to American farmers.

The financial mechanism outlined by Trump would place Iranian oil revenues and unfrozen assets into an account under US Treasury oversight, with disbursements limited to purchases of corn, wheat, soybeans and medical equipment from the United States. Trump described Iran’s situation as a “humanitarian crisis” requiring immediate aid. On energy transit, he reported that 19 million barrels of oil passed through Hormuz in a single day, a record volume, and that oil prices were falling. The US naval presence remains in place, with Trump asserting the ability to reimpose a maritime blockade within 30 minutes if needed, though he called that scenario “highly unlikely” for now.

The exchanges follow a period of direct military strikes by US and Israeli forces against Iranian targets, which Trump claimed had destroyed Iran’s navy, air force, air defences and nuclear potential. He also sharply criticised NATO allies Britain, Italy and Germany for declining to participate in those operations. The US-Iran negotiations, conducted through Swiss intermediaries, have now produced a framework for a high-level political oversight committee, and technical talks are expected to continue this week. The public divergence between Washington’s assertions and Tehran’s denials leaves the precise scope of any inspection regime and the status of the strait agreement open to further clarification.