U.S. President Donald Trump has claimed that Washington is holding “good talks” with Iran, but Gulf sources told Britain's The Telegraph that Tehran has refused to negotiate with the president’s envoy, Steve Witkoff, and his son-in-law Jared Kushner. Meanwhile, The Wall Street Journal reported that the Pentagon is expected to approve within hours the deployment of troops from the 82nd Airborne Division to the Middle East.
According to the sources, Iranian officials accused Witkoff and Kushner of responsibility for the U.S. strikes, saying they had “stabbed them in the back” after sitting down for nuclear talks while Washington was already planning the opening strike of Operation Roaring Lion, known in the United States as Operation Epic Fury. Despite this, the sources said Iran is open to talks with Vice President J.D. Vance, who was largely absent from discussions in February and the months leading up to it.
“Vance is the preferred option. They don’t want to work with Kushner or Witkoff. Vance is seen as skeptical about the strikes,” one Gulf source said, referring to the Iranian position.
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Trump envoy Steve Witkoff and Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi
(Photos: RS/Dawoud Abu Alkas, Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters, Hassan Ammar/AP)
Trump also addressed Vance’s possible involvement, saying at the White House: “He’s involved. Vance is involved and Marco [Rubio] is involved and Witkoff is involved and Kushner is involved. I’m involved too. Why? Because this is going to be so big. But I don’t want to talk about it — it’s below my level to talk about saving millions of lives. If Iran has a nuclear weapon, they will use it. It’s so destructive.”
Trump has insisted that the United States and Iran have already begun talks, despite firm denials from Tehran. “I am pleased to report that the United States and Iran have held very good and productive talks over the past two days regarding a full and complete resolution of hostilities between us in the Middle East,” the president wrote on Truth Social, later telling Fox Business that “Iran very much wants to make a deal.”
In contrast, Iran’s Foreign Ministry quickly clarified that “Iran maintains its position rejecting any form of negotiations before achieving its war objectives. Trump’s statement is a retreat from his previous threats. Iran’s position regarding the Strait of Hormuz has not changed, and the strait will remain closed to those attacking Iran.”
3,000 troops within 18 hours
Meanwhile, two U.S. officials told The Wall Street Journal that the deployment of a brigade from the 82nd Airborne Division to the Middle East is expected to be approved in the coming hours. According to them, the Pentagon is set to issue a written order for the deployment of the unit, which includes about 3,000 paratroopers. Earlier, The New York Times reported that U.S. officials were considering deploying the unit, along with elements of its command staff, to support American military operations in the war, though no formal order had yet been issued by the Pentagon or U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM).
The forces are expected to come from the division’s Immediate Response Force — troops capable of deploying anywhere in the world within 18 hours. These forces could be used to seize Kharg Island, Iran’s main oil export hub, often referred to as “oil island.” The advantage of using paratroopers lies in their rapid deployment capability; the drawback is that they do not bring heavy equipment, such as armored vehicles, which would be needed to defend against a potential Iranian counterattack.
The New York Times also reported another option under consideration: an assault involving about 2,500 troops from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, which is currently en route to the region. In such a scenario, elements of the 82nd Airborne could reinforce the Marines. According to current and former U.S. officials, the Marines lack the sustained logistical capacity that the 82nd Airborne can provide, potentially allowing it to replace Marine forces after the initial assault on the island.
The 82nd Airborne Division’s Immediate Response Force — also known as the “ready brigade” — has been deployed on short notice several times in recent years, including to the Middle East in January 2020 following the attack on the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, to Afghanistan in August 2021 for evacuation operations, and to Eastern Europe in 2022 to support Ukraine.