Trump turns the tables: Open the Strait, end the war

Times of India correspondent in Washington: “Iran has never won a war, but it has never lost a negotiation,” U.S. President Donald Trump said in January 2020 during his first term. The words are likely to come back to haunt his second-term administration. After weeks of military escalation against Iran alongside Israel, a chastened Trump now appears to be rushing toward a deal that falls far short of the top goals announced at the start of the conflict: Iran will not “completely and completely surrender,” the Tehran regime will not collapse, it will not verify the dismantling of Iran’s nuclear infrastructure, and it will not hand over its entire stockpile of highly enriched uranium.Instead, current U.S. goals have been narrowed to more modest goals: reopening the Strait of Hormuz and preventing disruptions in energy shipments from the Gulf from triggering a broader global economic collapse. Trump said on Saturday that the strait “will be open” under a new understanding with Tehran, ostensibly under pressure from other Gulf allies. Ironically, before the U.S.-Israeli military operation began, the strait was functioning normally.Trump said on Social Truth that “an agreement has been basically negotiated and is yet to be finalized by the United States, Iran and other countries… Final aspects and details of the agreement are currently being discussed and will be announced soon.” The withdrawal was sandwiched between a series of bizarre posts, including one cozying up to China, angrily speaking out against Democrats, and one claiming to be getting younger. U.S. officials claimed in leaks to U.S. media that the proposed deal includes Tehran’s commitment to abandon uranium mines and reopen the strait unconditionally. But Iran’s state-linked Fars news agency said there was no such commitment, insisting Tehran would continue to exercise sovereign control over routes, timing, permits and access to the strategic waterway, through which nearly a fifth of the world’s oil supplies pass.According to reports circulating in diplomatic circles in Washington, the proposed framework could involve the United States making a series of concessions, including a partial lifting of sanctions on Iran, access to approximately $25 billion in frozen Iranian assets, and a phased reopening of maritime traffic in exchange for renewed but unspecified discussions on Tehran’s nuclear program.