Trump has not said who the US has been speaking to in Iran as he has cast the regime in a state of chaos with the country's supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, reportedly severely injured, and lawmakers divided on negotiations about Tehran's nuclear programme.

Iran put forward a new proposal on Monday for a ceasefire deal focused on opening the strait of Hormuz, setting aside discussions on nuclear weapons, missiles, sanctions and other issues for later, according to officials in the region.

As my colleagues note in this story, Iranian officials said Tehran would be prepared to talk about the nuclear issue eventually, only after the US blockade of Iran's ports had ended.