Serious negotiations are now taking place, and that, in their opinion, as Great Leaders and Allies, a Deal will be made, which will be very acceptable to the United States of America, as well as all Countries in the Middle East, and beyond… we will NOT be doing the scheduled attack of Iran tomorrow, but have further instructed them to be prepared to go forward with a full, large scale assault of Iran, on a moment’s notice.” – Excerpts from President Donald J. Trump post on Truth Social
Trump earlier revealed that he had been preparing a major new military assault on Iran, only to call it off at the last moment as he glimpsed a potential path toward a long-elusive diplomatic agreement to end the conflict. Trump said he halted the planned strikes following urgent appeals from Gulf Arab allies, who face the risk of retaliatory Iranian attacks.
Tehran has explicitly warned that any resumption of hostilities by the United States and Israel would shatter the fragile, nearly six-week ceasefire and trigger a wider regional conflagration.
Trump, who had indefinitely extended the truce and made clear he wants to exit a war that has proven to be a political liability, said he had prepared a new attack for Tuesday after Iran refused his outlines of a deal.
The leaders of Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates asked him “to hold off on our planned Military attack of the Islamic Republic of Iran, which was scheduled for tomorrow, in that serious negotiations are now taking place,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
But Trump added he had instructed the US military to be “prepared to go forward with a full, large-scale assault of Iran, on a moment’s notice, in the event that an acceptable Deal is not reached.”
Speaking later at a White House event, Trump said there had been a “very positive development” and that Arab allies said a deal was near that would leave Iran without nuclear weapons, which Tehran denies pursuing.
“There seems to be a very good chance that they can work something out. If we can do that without bombing the hell out of them, I’d be very happy,” Trump said.
Iran has repeatedly rebuffed Trump’s offers and has exerted control over the Strait of Hormuz, the vital waterway into the Gulf, sending global oil prices spiraling.
Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei confirmed exchanges with the United States through Pakistan and said Tehran made clear its “concerns.”
The cleric-run state, whose supreme leader was killed in the initial strikes on February 28 but has proven resilient, is demanding the release of Iranian assets frozen abroad, the lifting of long-standing sanctions, and reparations for the war.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, considered a moderate in a system increasingly dominated by the hardline Revolutionary Guards since the war, said that speaking with Washington “does not mean surrender” and that Iran would defend its “dignity” and rights.
Iran’s Fars news agency said Sunday that Washington had presented a five-point list, which included a demand for Iran to keep only one nuclear site in operation and transfer its stockpile of highly enriched uranium to the United States.
US authorities had refused to release “even 25 percent” of Iran’s frozen assets or pay any reparations, Fars said.
But Iran’s Tasnim news agency, citing an unnamed source close to the Iranian negotiating team, said the United States made one new step forward in the latest text by agreeing to waive oil sanctions while negotiations were underway.
In an earlier proposal, which was sent last week, Iran had called for an end to the war on all fronts, including Israel’s campaign in Lebanon, as well as a halt to a US naval blockade on Iranian ports in place since April 13.
Fars said the Iranian proposal had emphasized that Tehran would continue to manage the strategic Strait of Hormuz, a vital energy conduit which Iran has largely kept closed since the start of the war.
On Monday, the Persian Gulf Strait Authority, a new body Iran has set up to manage the strait, said it would provide “real-time updates” on the waterway via X.
The Revolutionary Guards also said Monday that internet fiber optic cables passing through the strait could be brought under an Iranian system of permits.
Hoping to control oil prices, the US Treasury extended by 30 days a sanctions waiver for Russian oil cargoes already at sea, continuing to ease the pressure on Moscow since its 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Iran has also been ramping up military pressure.
The Revolutionary Guards on Monday said they struck groups linked to the United States and Israel within the Iranian province of Kurdistan, near the border with Iraq.
In a statement carried by the ISNA news agency, the Guards said groups from “northern Iraq and acting on behalf of the US and the Zionist regime were attempting to smuggle a large shipment of American weapons and ammunition” into Iran.
Raising fears even higher in the region, a drone strike on Sunday — unclaimed but which a UAE official appeared to blame on Iran — triggered a fire near a nuclear power station in the emirate of Abu Dhabi.
Trita Parsi, a critic of the war who is the executive vice president of the Washington-based Quincy Institute think tank, said that Trump’s latest message aimed to reframe the narrative to present himself as in control of developments.
The Gulf Arabs’ warning against an attack “could be true, but either way, they provide him with a face-saving exit from his previous threats,” he said.
By Agence France-Presse
