CNN: US envoy has not engaged in diplomacy with Iran following the attacks

Washington—The US President’s Special Envoy to Iran, Steve Witkoff, who has been leading US diplomatic negotiations with Iran in recent months, has not engaged in diplomacy with Iran following the United States–Israel joint attacks on the country, according to a CNN report on Tuesday (3 March).

The report said the Donald Trump administration, at least for now, has shifted away from diplomatic efforts while continuing military actions against Iran.

Witkoff has not spoken with Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi in several days since the situation escalated, the report quoted a senior administration official.

Earlier that day, US President Donald Trump posted on social media that it was too late to negotiate a US–Iran deal, arguing that the US held military superiority.

In another post, the US president boasted about an unlimited weapons supply, dismissing a Wall Street Journal report that highlighted the rapid depletion of stockpiles of air-defence interceptor missiles and other ammunition in the attack on Iran, which was reportedly struggling in terms of stock.

Meanwhile, Trump said that Reza Pahlavi, crown prince of Iran’s exiled last shah, was not a figure the White House was considering for the new leadership of Iran, saying that he still preferred someone from within to take over leadership.

Trump also acknowledged that there were no plans to evacuate US citizens across the Middle East before launching the large-scale military campaign against Iran.

“Because everything happened very quickly,” Trump told reporters.

The US State Department on Tuesday said that it was “actively securing” military and charter aircraft to fly Americans from the Middle East to safety as the war had severely disrupted commercial air travel.