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U.S., Iran hold first talks since June as Trump threatens annihilation

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Andrews, F., & Wassef, K. (2026, September 23). U.S., Iran hold first talks since June as Trump threatens annihilation. CBS News. https://www.cbsnews.com/live-updates/iran-war-trump-un-speech-annihilate-threat-talks-resume/

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

CBS News · collected 2026-09-23 · by Frank Andrews, Khaled Wassef

Quick Summary

On Tuesday during the United Nations General Assembly, U.S. and Iranian envoys held indirect talks mediated by Qatar. The U.S. side described these discussions as "constructive" but did not provide details. Meanwhile, President Trump warned of potential military action against Iran if a deal is not reached, while Iran's foreign ministry spokesman dismissed Trump’s threats as desperate and a sign of weakness.
Written by AI on 2026-09-23, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

As of September 2026, President Donald Trump told reporters that the U.S. is "hopefully toward the end" of its ongoing war with Iran, which began on February 28 and has lasted for seven months. Despite this hopeful statement, there are no clear timelines or significant de-escalation efforts in sight. The conflict continues to disrupt global oil supplies through the Strait of Hormuz, pushing up oil prices to over $108 per barrel. Additionally, Iran's foreign minister is under pressure from China and international concerns to reopen the strait and return to a previous interim peace deal with the U.S.

Meanwhile, tensions have escalated beyond Iran into Yemen, where Houthi rebels, aligned with Iran, pose significant threats near the Red Sea, complicating efforts at regional stability. The conflict has also drawn in other nations such as Saudi Arabia, which is offering extra crude oil through Oman to ease supply disruptions and stabilize oil prices.

At the United Nations General Assembly, Trump further alarmed global leaders by threatening to "annihilate" Iran if necessary, raising concerns about the potential for catastrophic outcomes involving nuclear weapons. This rhetoric contrasts sharply with past U.S. presidents who emphasized caution regarding such extreme measures. Despite these challenges, there is an urgent need for multilateral solutions and effective engagement through international bodies like the UN to address ongoing conflicts and crises around the world.

Written for “Trump's UN Speech Controversies” on 2026-10-30, grounded in this article and the 206 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Trump's UN Speech Controversies
Politics · 207 article(s) covering the same event. See how they differ ↓

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 4% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
BBC News
Hedges 1 of 29 claims Outlet record 69/100
Washington Examiner
⚖️ Leans strongly right Hedges 2 of 40 claims Outlet record 70/100
“While both articles describe events related to Trump and Iran at the UN General Assembly, they report on different aspects of the situation - Article A focuses on Trump's speech defending his decision for war, while Article B covers subsequent talks between U.S. and Iranian envoys.”
Euronews
Hedges 1 of 31 claims Outlet record 60/100
Al Jazeera
⚖️ Leans right Hedges 0 of 2 claims Outlet record 60/100
The Guardian
Hedges 2 of 37 claims Outlet record 66/100
Al Jazeera
⚖️ Centre Hedges 0 of 4 claims Outlet record 60/100
Al Jazeera
Hedges 0 of 2 claims Outlet record 60/100
NBC News
Outlet record 60/100
The Hindu
⚖️ Leans strongly right Hedges 4 of 47 claims Outlet record 60/100
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
45
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
4%
2 of 45 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
withheld
no quote in the article backed the model's score
Publisher signals
66/100
CBS News's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
207
Politics
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-09-23 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

CBS News · 4207 article(s) · 6 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 6 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Frank Andrews
17 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 The delegation is led by a senior adviser to Qatar's prime minister and foreign minister and is scheduled to meet with senior Iranian officials, IRNA said, adding that the discussions would focus on bilateral relations between Iran and Qatar, as well as developments in the region.
🔮 Tehran is considering the proposal and will respond by the end of the week, the agency reported Wednesday.
🔮 - Iranian officials said Sunday that indirect negotiations with the U.S. continue but that Tehran will not change its positions even if Mr. Trump does order a resumption of American attacks on the Islamic Republic.
🔮 The exchange came as Zelenskyy prepared to meet U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff in Norway on Tuesday, with his fellow envoy, Mr. Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, expected to join remotely.
🔮 The price of Brent crude oil, the international benchmark, eased Friday to around $103 a barrel after Mr. Trump promised the U.S. would not resume attacks on Iran before the U.S. midterm elections early next month.
🔮 The increase is thanks largely to producers using alternative routes via the Red Sea, where the escalating fight with the Houthis could bring more uncertainty this week.
🔮 - Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian, who is in New York for the annual U.N. gathering, said Tehran would "firmly defend" Iran's positions in the war and use the opportunity to "convey Iran's plight."
🔮 Iran warns it will expand the war if there is another U.S. assault
🔮 "Anything could happen with me."
🔮 As fears grow that the race for AI supremacy could be hurtling us all toward a grim fate not unlike the apocalyptic plot line of the Terminator movies, analysts tell CBS News that mutual distrust between the U.S. and China, as much as the technology itself, could lead humanity "off a cliff."
Also by Frank Andrews
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 17 articles by Frank Andrews →
Khaled Wassef
10 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 The delegation is led by a senior adviser to Qatar's prime minister and foreign minister and is scheduled to meet with senior Iranian officials, IRNA said, adding that the discussions would focus on bilateral relations between Iran and Qatar, as well as developments in the region.
🔮 Tehran is considering the proposal and will respond by the end of the week, the agency reported Wednesday.
🔮 - Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian, who is in New York for the annual U.N. gathering, said Tehran would "firmly defend" Iran's positions in the war and use the opportunity to "convey Iran's plight."
🔮 Energy secretary says "we are always open" for nuclear agreement with Iran Energy Secretary Chris Wright said Sunday that the Trump administration is not shutting down diplomatic relations with Iran despite his comments earlier that there "may not be a nuclear agreement.
🔮 Oil prices jump again as Iran continues launching attacks on U.S. Gulf allies Oil prices jumped again Thursday as Iran claimed new strikes targeting U.S. forces across the Middle East, but bond yields eased and stock markets traded steadier after recent volatility. Crude futures had dropped briefly, after President Trump suggested U.S. attacks against Iran would likely be short-lived, but with Iran's retaliation continuing, and likely to draw further American strikes, oil prices continued the general upward trend on Thursday that has been seen for a week, since hostilities resumed.
🔮 President Trump told Al Jazeera on Wednesday that the U.S. was "achieving a very big victory" against Iran, but that the war "will continue for as long as necessary" and there's no timetable to resume peace talks with Tehran.
🔮 Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf called on Iran and Iraq to strengthen economic cooperation and prepare for what he described as "unjust sanctions," warning that the United States and Israel had shifted toward economic warfare after failing to defeat the two countries militarily. Speaking to Iranian and Iraqi businesspeople at the Iranian Embassy in Baghdad on Thursday, Ghalibaf said the two countries should develop mechanisms to withstand sanctions and reduce their dependence on the U.S. dollar. "If you look at the resources and raw materials of Muslim countries, you will realize that our enemies come to plunder them," Ghalibaf said, according to a post on his channel on the Telegram messaging app.
🔮 It's been careening back and forth because of uncertainty about what the war with Iran will do to the global flow of crude.
🔮 - President Trump on Wednesday announced a "crushing economic operation" on Iran, one he said would amount to "economic warfare."
🔮 - He also called Iran's leadership "unbelievably duplicitous" after Tehran said it had no plans to hold direct talks with Washington, despite his claim that negotiations would start Monday and that a "deal is imminent."
Also by Khaled Wassef
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 10 articles by Khaled Wassef →

Topics

Iran Iranian U.N. U.S. the United Nations General Assembly

Subjects

Trump PERSON · 14× Iran GPE · 13× U.S. GPE · 11× Iranian NORP · 10× Witkoff PERSON · 5× U.N. ORG · 4× Steve Witkoff PERSON · 3× American NORP · 2× Baqaei PERSON · 2× the United Nations General Assembly ORG · 2×

Narrative

President Trump told reporters earlier Tuesday that Witkoff and U.S. envoy Jared Kushner had a "very good meeting," and the two sides "have another one scheduled in the very near future." Trump meets with Gulf leaders on sidelines of U.N. General Assembly President Trump joined a meeting of the Gulf Cooperation Council on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly, where the president said there's a "lot of momentum" for Iran to make a deal.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-23
🔮 - Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian, who is in New York for the annual U.N. gathering, said Tehran would "firmly defend" Iran's positions in the war and use the opportunity to "convey Iran's plight."

Claims (45 extracted, 2 hedged)

What to know about the Iran war today: - U.S. and Iranian envoys Tuesday on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff said. asserted
Witkoff → know → Assembly
Iran said the discussions took place via a mediator, and President Trump said they went well, but offered no further details. asserted
they → say → details
- he had a "big decision to make" on whether to seek a deal to end the nearly seven-month war, or to "annihilate" Iran and drive it "into hell with no chance of survival." asserted
he → have → survival
- Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian, who is in New York for the annual U.N. gathering, said Tehran would "firmly defend" Iran's positions in the war and use the opportunity to "convey Iran's plight." asserted
Tehran → say → plight
He is due to address the summit Wednesday, according to Iranian state media. uncertain
He → address → media
Iran calls Trump's U.N. speech "a sign of desperation" asserted
Iran → call → desperation
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei has said that President Trump's remarks to the U.N. were "a sign of desperation." asserted
remarks → say → desperation
Speaking to state news agency IRNA, Baqaei also confirmed the talks held between U.S. and Iranian envoys on Tuesday took place via Qatari mediators. asserted
talks → speak → mediators
"The Iranian delegation conveyed its views and its conditions very explicitly and clearly to the American side through the mediators," he said. asserted
he → convey → mediators
Addressing Mr. Trump's remarks about his pending "big decision" on whether to make a deal with, or "annihilate" the Iranian regime, Baqaei said: "The impression among diplomats and delegations from many countries here was that these remarks did not stem from strength, but from desperation … asserted
remarks → address → desperation
Threatening a country with military attack is an admission of the nature of the current U.S. ruling establishment." asserted
Threatening → threaten → establishment
U.S. and Iranian negotiators "successfully completed" indirect talks in NYC, Witkoff says U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff said American and Iranian negotiators "engaged in lengthy talks" on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly. asserted
negotiators → complete → Assembly
In a post on X late Tuesday, Witkoff said the two sides spoke through mediators over the course of the day. asserted
sides → say → day
He did not describe the substance of the talks, but said they "successfully completed a round of discussions that we hope will prove constructive and promising." asserted
we → describe → discussions
President Trump told reporters earlier Tuesday that Witkoff and U.S. envoy Jared Kushner had a "very good meeting," and the two sides "have another one scheduled in the very near future." Trump meets with Gulf leaders on sidelines of U.N. General Assembly President Trump joined a meeting of the Gulf Cooperation Council on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly, where the president said there's a "lot of momentum" for Iran to make a deal. asserted
Iran → tell → deal
Countries represented in the meeting included Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey. asserted
Countries → represent → Jordan
"I like these people," the president said of the leaders around him. asserted
president → like → him
The president said Iran's economy is in bad shape, and he hopes they do something good for their people. asserted
they → say → people
"I don't think about the election at all when I think about ending the nuclear threat from Iran. asserted
I → think → Iran
I just think about ending the nuclear threat from Iran," he said. asserted
he → think → Iran
U.S. delegation, including Kushner and Witkoff, met with Iranian officials, Trump says President Trump said U.S. and Iranian officials met on Tuesday, shortly after threatening in his address to the U.N. General Assembly that he may "annihilate" the Islamic Republic if a deal isn't reached soon to end the nearly seven-month war. Mr. Trump told reporters the meeting happened, and ended "about an hour ago," but offered few details about the talks. "It was a very good meeting," Mr. Trump said. uncertain
Trump → include → talks
"They have another one scheduled in the very near future." asserted
one → have → future
The meeting lasted about three hours, Mr. Trump said, and his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and special envoy Steve Witkoff were part of it. asserted
son → last → it
Witkoff echoed that the meeting went well, saying "I feel very good right now," but provided no further details. AP/CBS Iran and U.S. held peace talks Tuesday, Trump says The U.S. and Iran held talks Tuesday while both countries are at the U.N. for this week's General Assembly, President Trump said. asserted
Trump → echo → Assembly
He also said he believes the U.S. will come to an agreement with Iran, though he did not specify when. asserted
he → say → Iran
"I think that a settlement is going to be reached," Mr. Trump said during a bilateral meeting with U.K. Prime Minister Andy Burnham. asserted
Trump → think → Burnham
"They want to talk to us. asserted
They → want → us
They have been talking to us. asserted
They → talk → us
Even today, they've been talking to us, and the relationship is developing, let's say." asserted
's → talk → us
Mr. Trump was not more specific about what he meant by the "relationship is developing," or put a time frame on when the agreement would come. asserted
agreement → mean → frame
Earlier in the day, however, he expected the deal to come after the midterm elections. asserted
deal → expect → elections
The president also seemed to say Iran had agreed that it would not pursue a nuclear weapon. asserted
it → seem → weapon
"They understand that we can't let them have a nuclear weapon, and there's a price to pay for that," Mr. Trump said. asserted
Trump → understand → that
The Iranian delegation is expected in New York City for the U.N. General Assembly on Wednesday, though it's not yet clear whether Mr. Trump will meet with either their president or foreign minister. asserted
Trump → expect → president
Trump says deciding between deal or driving Iran "into hell" asserted
Trump → say → hell
President Trump told the United Nations General Assembly Tuesday that he had to choose whether to "annihilate" Iran if it fails to make a deal to end the Iran war. asserted
it → tell → war
"I have a big decision to make – will a deal be made with Iran that lets them rebuild and create a far greater country than it ever was before, maybe one of the greatest in the Middle East or even the world?" Mr. Trump said. asserted
Trump → have → East
"Or do I annihilate the Islamic Republic and do it quickly, never giving them a chance to kill and destroy people and countries again?" he said. asserted
he → annihilate → people
"Do I drive them into hell with no chance of survival and no hope of future greatness or generations?" asserted
I → drive → greatness
The president also reiterated that he believes an agreement is possible before U.S. midterm elections in November, in which his Republican Party faces losing control of Congress at least partly due to high fuel prices caused by the war. asserted
Party → reiterate → war
…and 5 more, not listed.
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