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Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Monday that negotiating with the US is “meaningless,” accusing Washington of using talks as cover to attack Iran, as three tankers were struck near the Strait of Hormuz in two days.

Getting into it: Speaking during a meeting with Armenia’s foreign minister in Tehran, Pezeshkian said the US has attacked Iran three times after sitting down for talks, and that its real goal is to overthrow the Islamic Republic. His comments come as Iran reviews a US response to its plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within seven days in exchange for lifting the US naval blockade, easing oil sanctions and a regional ceasefire, with Qatar and Pakistan passing messages between the two sides.

The main dispute is reportedly over which side should act first. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi struck a softer tone, saying “there is no military solution, nor any solution based on new sanctions,” and that Tehran still wants a diplomatic way out. President Trump said Monday he’s still open to direct talks with Iran. Over the weekend, he said the standoff could end “the easy way or the hard way.”

“Our problem with the United States is that every time we come to the negotiating table, war is immediately imposed on us,” Pezeshkian said. “With an enemy that every day resorts to assassination, sanctions, pressure, and threats, and that breaks its commitments, negotiations are meaningless.”

This all comes as tensions are rising at sea, especially after an unidentified projectile hit a tanker in the strait this week and set its engine room on fire, after two other tankers were struck Sunday, according to the British maritime agency UKMTO. Another tanker turned back Monday after Iran’s Revolutionary Guard threatened to target it, and Iranian state-linked media claimed Iran had targeted 13 “violator” tankers in the past week.

US Central Command said its forces have redirected 130 commercial vessels, disabled three and destroyed 13 for violating the US blockade since it resumed in July, and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Iran didn’t load a single tanker with crude last month. The US also warned foreign banks Monday they could be sanctioned without notice for doing business with Iran.