US President Donald Trump has signalled that Washington is putting greater emphasis on economic pressure on Iran, saying the United States is only “semi-negotiating” with Tehran as Iran grapples with severe inflation and financial strain.

The comments came as Iran said it was not engaged in direct negotiations with Washington, setting the stage for a renewed standoff between the two countries even as Tehran pursues separate discussions with Oman over the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

Oil prices rose following the latest developments, reflecting renewed concern that the confrontation could further disrupt shipping through one of the world's most important oil transit routes. Brent crude, the international benchmark, rose 1.2% to $84.41 a barrel, while US crude climbed to $78.82.

In an interview with Axios, Trump said Washington was deliberately keeping its engagement with Iran at a low level.

“We are only semi-negotiating with them,” Trump said, adding that the United States was “just watching Iran with its huge inflation and the fact they have no money.”

The comments indicate that the Trump administration sees Iran's economic difficulties as a source of leverage and is not in a hurry to make concessions to bring Tehran back into direct negotiations.

Iran, meanwhile, has continued to reject the prospect of direct talks with Washington, saying the United States must first honour commitments contained in an interim agreement reached in June.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Sunday that Tehran and Washington were not engaged in direct negotiations and would not begin such talks as long as Washington continued to breach the June agreement.

He said messages were nevertheless being exchanged through intermediaries, leaving open a limited channel for diplomacy despite the absence of direct negotiations.

Hormuz emerges as a separate diplomatic track

The most immediate area of potential US-Iran confrontation is the Strait of Hormuz, through which a substantial share of the world's oil shipments normally passes.

Iran has been negotiating with Oman over arrangements for safe shipping through the strategic waterway. Araqchi said an agreement with Oman was in its “final stages”, but stressed that Iran would not reopen the strait until Washington met conditions set by Tehran.

Under the proposed arrangement, Iran and Oman would establish new shipping lanes that could be used once the US fulfils those conditions and the waterway is reopened, Iran's Mehr news agency reported.

The development offers a potential diplomatic route toward easing the shipping crisis, but it also underscores how closely the fate of the waterway remains tied to the wider US-Iran confrontation.

Iran has made clear that it regards the reopening of the strait as contingent on US actions rather than simply an agreement with Oman.

Araqchi said the conditions include compensation from the United States for damage caused during widespread attacks on Iran.

Mohammad Baqer Zolqadr, secretary of Iran's top national security body, has outlined a broader list of demands. These include an end to further US threats against Iran, a halt to what Tehran describes as aggression against Iran and its allies in Lebanon, Palestine, Yemen and Iraq, removal of a US naval blockade in the Gulf, lifting of sanctions and the release of frozen Iranian assets.

The demands go well beyond the immediate question of shipping and effectively link the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz to a much broader easing of the confrontation between Washington and Tehran.

Tehran hardens its position

Iran's position has also been reinforced by changes at the top of its national security establishment.

Iran's supreme leader has replaced the country's national security chief with Mohsen Rezaei, a veteran Revolutionary Guards commander and long-standing regime figure who has previously expressed scepticism about negotiations with the United States.

The appointment comes at a sensitive moment for Tehran, as the government faces economic pressure while simultaneously seeking to retain leverage over Washington and protect its regional interests.