[Anchor]

U.S. President Donald Trump, who previously rejected Iran's proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, has mentioned the possibility of additional talks with Iran, leaving the door open for negotiations. The talks are expected to take place this week.

Here is a report from Washington correspondent Jeon Byeong-nam.

[Reporter]

U.S. President Donald Trump has stated that he plans to hold additional talks with Iran.

In an interview with the U.S. online media outlet Axios, Trump said, "I expect there will be additional negotiations with Iran sometime this week," adding, "It's because they want to make a deal."

Reiterating that oil prices will drop once the war with Iran ends, Trump also continued to keep the possibility of resuming airstrikes open.

[Donald Trump / U.S. President: The moment Iran surrenders and the war ends, oil prices will plummet. That's going to happen soon. Last night, we took out a record amount of oil from Hormuz, more than before the war.]

Previously, on the 26th local time, Trump rejected Iran's so-called "seven-day plan," in which Iran proposed to open the Strait of Hormuz within seven days and engage in nuclear negotiations on the condition of ending all hostilities across all fronts and lifting the U.S. maritime blockade.

At the time, Trump stated that while he also "likes deals," he "could not accept that proposal." This is interpreted as an intention to manage the situation regarding Iran while keeping the door to negotiations open.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi also left room for a diplomatic resolution, saying, "I heard that Trump rejected the 'seven-day plan' proposal, but we are still waiting for an official response."

[Abbas Araghchi / Iranian Foreign Minister (NBC Interview): While there is no reason for us to return to diplomacy, we believe we must not miss any opportunity for peace, and therefore we are still trying for a diplomatic solution.]

Negotiations between the U.S. and Iran are expected to take place as early as the 28th local time. However, it remains uncertain whether the gap in their positions will narrow, as Iran demands the lifting of the U.S. maritime blockade while the U.S. demands nuclear-related concessions from Iran.

Meanwhile, various interpretations are emerging over the omission of a mention of the "denuclearization of North Korea" in the White House briefing materials for the U.S.-China summit.

While some interpret that the term "denuclearization" was intentionally omitted to resume North Korea-U.S. dialogue, attention continues to focus on whether President Trump asked Chinese President Xi Jinping for assistance regarding the matter.

(Reported by Park Eun-ha | Video by Jung Sung-hoon | Graphics by Shim Soo-hyun)