Iran Has No Plans to Negotiate with US, Says State Media

FILE PHOTO: Vessels at the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, September 23, 2026. Picture taken through a window. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Vessels at the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, September 23, 2026. Picture taken through a window. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo
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Iran Has No Plans to Negotiate with US, Says State Media

FILE PHOTO: Vessels at the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, September 23, 2026. Picture taken through a window. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Vessels at the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, September 23, 2026. Picture taken through a window. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo

State media in Iran on Monday reported that Iran's delegation to the UN General Assembly had no talks planned with the United States, after US President Donald Trump said he expected more negotiations.

"Iran's delegation in New York has no plans for negotiations with the United States," said the official IRNA news agency, citing an unnamed source close to the group.

Trump told media outlet Axios on Sunday that he expected talks to resume soon, a day after he rejected a proposal by Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within seven days, said AFP.

"Iran's views and positions were conveyed clearly and explicitly to the US side... via a Qatari mediator," IRNA said, adding that the Iranian delegation would return to Tehran on Tuesday.

Iran says it presented seven conditions for ending the war and reopening the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway through which roughly 20 percent of the world's oil and gas flowed before the war.

The strait lies at the heart of the conflict that began with US-Israeli strikes on Iran in February.

Following that attack, Tehran placed a chokehold on the waterway, and Washington responded with a blockade of Iranian ports.

Axios said indirect talks mediated by Qatar could take place as early as Monday, less than a week after similar discussions between US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.

Iran demands a seven-day ceasefire across the Middle East, including in Lebanon, where its ally Hezbollah is regularly bombarded by Israel.

It also demands the unfreezing of its foreign assets, lifting sanctions on its oil sector, and an end to the US naval blockade.

Trump rejected their demands on Saturday.

But fighting has once again slowed as the US has not struck Iran since September 1, although vessels have regularly been struck in the Strait of Hormuz.



Iran's Guards Say Oil Tanker on Fire after Hitting Mine in Hormuz

Oil tankers sail near the Strait of Hormuz (Reuters)
Oil tankers sail near the Strait of Hormuz (Reuters)
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Iran's Guards Say Oil Tanker on Fire after Hitting Mine in Hormuz

Oil tankers sail near the Strait of Hormuz (Reuters)
Oil tankers sail near the Strait of Hormuz (Reuters)

Iran's Revolutionary Guards said Monday an oil tanker caught fire in the Strait of Hormuz after hitting a mine, the latest such incident since Tehran tightened its grip of the waterway.

Iran seized control of the strait after war broke out against the United States and Israel late February, choking off the vital shipping route which normally carries about a fifth of the world's oil.

The Iranian republic has demanded that all ships seek its authorization before transiting.

"An oil tanker, which was in violation, struck a naval mine south of the Strait of Hormuz, resulting in an explosion and a fire in its engine room," Iranian state media quoted the Guards as saying.

The tanker was travelling in the strait's "unauthorized southern route" and had disabled its positioning and navigation systems, the statement said.

It came a day after the Guards said two oil tankers caught fire in the strait, both after hitting mines.

The Guards' naval commander Admiral Ali Ozmaei warned this week that any vessel that deactivated its navigation systems would be considered "hostile".

The United States has imposed a naval counter-blockade on Iranian oil exports in response to Tehran's blockade on the waterway.


France’s Macron Declines Interior Minister’s Offer to Resign

A French firefighter responds to a street barricade burns as clashes between riot police and demonstrators continue for the second day during nationwide protests against the high cost of living in Paris, France, 18 October 2026. (EPA)
A French firefighter responds to a street barricade burns as clashes between riot police and demonstrators continue for the second day during nationwide protests against the high cost of living in Paris, France, 18 October 2026. (EPA)
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France’s Macron Declines Interior Minister’s Offer to Resign

A French firefighter responds to a street barricade burns as clashes between riot police and demonstrators continue for the second day during nationwide protests against the high cost of living in Paris, France, 18 October 2026. (EPA)
A French firefighter responds to a street barricade burns as clashes between riot police and demonstrators continue for the second day during nationwide protests against the high cost of living in Paris, France, 18 October 2026. (EPA)

French President Emmanuel Macron has declined Interior Minister Laurent Nunez's offer to resign after widespread weekend rioting, the Elysee presidential office said on Monday.

The demonstrations have been sparked by ‌public anger ‌over rising living ‌costs, ⁠faltering public services ⁠and also the state of schools.

Macron said Nunez should stay to ensure a chain of command is retained within ⁠the police and security ‌forces, ‌and has also asked Nunez ‌to set up as ‌quickly as possible new approaches to deal with looters, the Elysee added.

Nationwide demonstrations erupted ‌into riots on Saturday, with a town hall ⁠torched, ⁠shops pillaged and buildings covered in graffiti as violent groups clashed with police in cities.

More clashes also broke out in Paris and Marseille on Sunday, where riot police intervened to prevent attempts to ransack businesses.


Rubio Says No Pause in US Intel Sharing with Ukraine

 US Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks to the press at Registan Square in Samarkand, Uzbekistan Monday, Oct. 19, 2026. (Kylie Cooper/Pool Photo via AP)
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks to the press at Registan Square in Samarkand, Uzbekistan Monday, Oct. 19, 2026. (Kylie Cooper/Pool Photo via AP)
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Rubio Says No Pause in US Intel Sharing with Ukraine

 US Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks to the press at Registan Square in Samarkand, Uzbekistan Monday, Oct. 19, 2026. (Kylie Cooper/Pool Photo via AP)
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks to the press at Registan Square in Samarkand, Uzbekistan Monday, Oct. 19, 2026. (Kylie Cooper/Pool Photo via AP)

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio denied on Monday that there had been any suspension of intelligence sharing with Ukraine and called on President Volodymyr Zelensky to "focus" on ending the war with Russia.

"There has been no pause," Rubio told reporters when asked about Ukraine's claims that the United States had briefly halted the sending of intelligence to help counter Russia's missile attacks.

The Ukraine leader told US media on Sunday that the move had been "deblocked by the American side" after a three-day suspension.

Rubio, who is in Uzbekistan for talks with Central Asian officials, said that President Donald Trump wanted Zelensky and Russia's President Vladimir Putin to concentrate on ending the Russian invasion, now into its fifth year.

"What he (Zelensky) should be focused on and what we want to be focused on is bringing an end to this war," Rubio said.

"That's what we want everybody to be focused on. That's what we want the Russians to be focused on. That's what we should be focused on. That's what the president has made a priority: is trying to bring a war and an end to this war," the top US diplomat said.

Trump, who says he has made a deal with Russia to secure fuel exports in exchange for the easing of sanctions, has made renewed attacks on Zelensky in recent days over the war.

The US leader wrote on his Truth Social platform on Sunday that he was making "great progress" in negotiating peace between Russia and Ukraine, but claimed: "Zelenskyy doesn't care, and frankly, with all of the money that Europe is famously giving him... he doesn't want to end this war, and probably never did."

"Zelenskyy is using Diesel Refineries in Russia as a target, knowing that these attacks are seriously hurting the world diesel markets, including those in the United States," Trump said.