US President Donald Trump has said that talks with Iran are going "very well" and could yield results over the coming weekend.
"I hear the negotiation itself is going very well, actually," Trump told reporters, adding of a potential deal: "It could happen... over the weekend."
Trump's assessment differed sharply from that of Iran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, who said that lines of communication with the United States were still open, but "no tangible progress" had been made in negotiations to end the Middle East war.
Trump also said he wants to separate the US-Iran talks from those on the war between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
"I'd like to separate it, I'd like to have a separate thing, because it is, it is separate," Trump said.
"We actually spoke with Hezbollah for the first time, ever," the US president said of efforts to halt the fighting in Lebanon.
"They agreed yesterday they're not going to shoot, Israel's not going to shoot, we're just going to see," Trump said.
Fire exchange downplayed
Overnight, the US said it shot down Iranian drones and carried out a strike on an Iranian ground control station, while Tehran's forces launched drones and missiles at several Gulf neighbours.
Trump downplayed the exchange of fire, saying: "It's a different part of the world, you know. I'd say in that part of the world, ceasefire is when you're shooting in a more moderate manner."
"There's a reason for everything, and we hit them pretty hard the night before, and actually last night," Trump said of the Iranians, adding: "When it was explained to me, I said, 'all right.'"
A ceasefire has been in place between the US and Iran since early April, while one in Lebanon took effect mid-month.
Despite this, clashes between the various parties to the conflicts have continued.
