While President Donald Trump cited “productive conversations” with Iranian officials as reason for his sudden reversal Monday in his administration’s war against Iran, new reporting appeared to directly contradict those claims, prompting critics to argue the announcement was an attempt to “save face” after effectively folding under pressure from Tehran.
“Iran called his bluff on the Strait and he folded,” noted journalist and professor Adam Cochran in a social media post on X Monday.
On Saturday, Trump warned Iran that unless U.S. vessels were allowed to traverse the Strait of Hormuz – a crucial shipping channel through which 20% of the world’s oil trade flows – he would authorize strikes on Iranian power plants, a threat that one international security expert warned could spark “global economic disaster of historic scale.”
Trump issued Iran a deadline of Monday evening to comply with his demand, but on Monday morning he extended the deadline by five days after claiming to have had “very good” conversations with Iranian leadership.
Shortly after Trump’s announcement, however, Iran’s foreign ministry said that no such talks had taken place between Tehran and the Trump administration, and “described Trump’s remarks as part of an effort to influence energy markets and gain time,” the Indian news outlet WION reported. Past reporting also suggests that Iran has been effectively ignoring the Trump administration's pleas to restart negotiations.
The revelation led several prominent Trump critics to theorize, much like Iran’s foreign ministry, that Trump’s sudden reversal was merely a ploy to buy time and “save face.”
“Iranian media already claiming that there have been no talks with Trump,” Cochran wrote in another social media post on X to their more than 285,000 followers. “As I suggested – it looks like they called his bluff on the ultimatum, and he is trying to save face before markets open. He’ll postpone only to re-escalate later this week with the risk of these strikes landing next weekend.”
Author and journalist Ali Abunimah came to a similar conclusion as Cochran, arguing that Trump’s reversal was further evidence that the president had succumbed to pressure and was attempting to reframe the retreat as a diplomatic breakthrough.
“Either Trump is backing down or he’s lying. Probably both,” Abunimah wrote Monday in a social media post on X to their more than 270,000 followers.Iranian media already claiming that there have been no talks with Trump.
As I suggested - it looks like they called his bluff on the ultimatum, and he is trying to save face before markets open.
He’ll postpone only to re-escalate later this week with the risk of these strikes… https://t.co/6WHgOiGxGc
— Adam Cochran (adamscochran.eth) (@adamscochran) March 23, 2026