Smoke billows following an Iranian missile strike in Tel Aviv on Tuesday. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Airstrikes battered Iran and Iranian missiles and drones targeted Israel and sites across the Mideast on Tuesday, even as President Donald Trump said the United States was in talks with the Islamic Republic to end the war.

With thousands more U.S. Marines on their way to the Gulf, both sides firing barrages and Iran denying any negotiations are taking place, the war’s tempo remained high a day after Trump delayed his self-imposed deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Tehran’s chokehold on that crucial waterway has snarled international shipping, sent fuel prices skyrocketing, and threatened the world economy.

Pakistan offered to host diplomatic talks, but Iran remained defiant, vowing to fight “until complete victory.”

Any talks between the U.S. and Iran would face monumental challenges. Many of Washington’s shifting objectives, particularly over Iran’s ballistic missile and nuclear programs, remain difficult to achieve. Meanwhile, it’s not clear who in Iran’s government would have the authority to negotiate — or be willing to, as Israel has vowed to continue taking out leaders after killing several.

Iran remains highly suspicious of the United States, which twice under the Trump administration has attacked during high-level diplomatic talks, including with the Feb. 28 strikes that started the current war.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif wrote on X that Pakistan is ready to “facilitate meaningful and conclusive talks” to end the Iran war.

The U.S. had agreed in principle to join talks in Pakistan, according to three Pakistani officials, one Egyptian official and a Gulf diplomat, while mediators were still working to convince Iran.

One diplomat from the region said the talks could happen by early next week, and that special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner are expected to represent the U.S. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to provide details to the media.

Speaking Tuesday at the White House, the president said the U.S. is “in negotiations right now” and that the participants included Witkoff, Kushner, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Vice President JD Vance.

“We have a number of people doing it,” Trump said. “And the other side, I can tell you, they’d like to make a deal.”

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi’s office said he has been discussing the war this week with several counterparts. But Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, the speaker of Iran’s parliament, denied Trump’s claim of direct talks, and an Iranian military spokesman issued a newly defiant statement.

“Iran’s powerful armed forces are proud, victorious and steadfast in defending Iran’s integrity, and this path will continue until complete victory,” Iranian state television quoted Maj. Gen. Ali Abdollahi Aliabadi as saying Tuesday.

Aliabadi did not say what victory would look like, but Iran’s military could be trying to warn political leaders against offering concessions in any possible negotiations.

The Egyptian official said efforts are centered on “trust-building” between the U.S. and Iran, with the aim of bringing about a pause in fighting. Israel is not involved.

The official, who is involved in the efforts, said the priority is to prevent attacks on regional energy infrastructure and that they were working on a “mechanism” for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

Talk of negotiations briefly drove down oil prices and boosted stocks. But that respite was short-lived, with the price of Brent crude, the international standard, nudging back over $100 a barrel Tuesday, up nearly 40% since the war started.

Israel said it carried out an extensive series of strikes on Iranian “production sites,” without providing more information. In Tehran, a massive blast was heard in northern neighborhoods and another in the city center.

Iran also fired at least a dozen waves of missiles at Israel, and first responders said three people were wounded in southern Israel, and four others suffered minor wounds in Tel Aviv.