Iran officials have contradicted Donald Trump’s claim of “productive” talks with the regime and suggested his decision to postpone strikes on Iranian power plants was a sign of a panicking president. On Monday morning, merely hours ahead of a deadline that threatened further escalation in the Middle East, Trump announced he had given orders to postpone ​any military strikes against Iranian power plants for five days, noting the two countries have had “very good and productive conversations regarding a complete and total resolution of our hostilities in the Middle East.” In an all-caps statement on Truth Social, he added: “BASED ON THE TENOR AND TONE OF THESE IN DEPTH, DETAILED, AND CONSTRUCTIVE CONVERSATIONS, WITCH WILL CONTINUE THROUGHOUT THE WEEK, I HAVE INSTRUCTED THE DEPARTMENT OF WAR TO POSTPONE ANY AND ALL MILITARY STRIKES AGAINST IRANIAN POWER PLANTS AND ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE FOR A FIVE DAY PERIOD, SUBJECT TO THE SUCCESS OF THE ONGOING MEETINGS AND DISCUSSIONS.”