Report: Trump, Erdogan sought to arrange US-Iran talks but Iranian officials couldn’t reach Khamenei

An effort by US President Donald Trump and Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan to schedule a sit-down next week between American and Iranian officials failed to bear fruit because Iranian officials were unable to reach Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, according to Axios.

Citing US officials and a source with direct knowledge of the matter, the news site reports that Trump told Erdogan he was open to flying to Turkey to meet Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian if needed to secure a deal, or could dispatch his Vice President JD Vance and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff.

Erdogan and his foreign minister, in turn, reportedly informed Pezeshkian and Iran’s top diplomat Abbas Araghchi, who then sought Khamenei’s okay for the meeting, but they couldn’t reach the Iranian leader as he remains in hiding over fears of being assassinated.