Trump says Iran requested meeting, but Iranian officials say nothing scheduled

President Donald Trump said on Monday on social media that Iran had requested a meeting with US counterparts, though Iranian officials said no such meeting was scheduled.
The US president has tried to preserve an increasingly fragile interim deal as hostilities have mounted in the Strait of Hormuz in recent days, which could cause oil prices to rise and undermine Trump's claims to voters that inflation in America was easing. 

Pakistan, a key mediator, has said that talks would resume Tuesday. Trump said the meeting with Iran would happen on Tuesday in Doha, Qatar. The Trump administration on Sunday said nothing has been cancelled and technical talks are on track for the coming days. But Kazem Gharibabadi, a senior negotiator for Iran, denied any talks had been scheduled, in comments published 
by IRNA.

 “Although consultations with Qatar, including on following up on the implementation of the other side's commitments, are continuing as usual, reports by some media about technical talks by the working groups being held in Doha are not confirmed,” he said.
Technical talks involve lower-level diplomats working on the specifics of any deal that would draw top leaders from Iran and the US back to the table.     (AP )