U.S. President Donald Trump announced that Iran has acceded to “virtually everything” Washington has demanded, while emphasizing that diplomatic negotiations with Tehran remain active following a preliminary breakthrough.
“I think they accepted virtually everything that we need,” Trump stated during a televised interview with CNBC. He confirmed that both nations are currently engaged in ongoing talks to hammer out details of the preliminary agreement reached between the two sides on June 18, which aimed to establish a framework for advanced negotiations.
Framing the geopolitical friction, the President clarified that the friction with Iran “is not a war properly speaking,” but rather a strict mandate focused on the “nuclear disarmament” of the Islamic Republic.
Insisting that under no circumstances would Iran be permitted to develop a nuclear weapon, Trump claimed credit for crippling the nation’s military defense infrastructure. “They have no Navy, no Air Force, no radars anymore,” the President asserted.
Read more about this topic: Trump claims Iran “will cease to exist” if US returns to war
Furthermore, after stating that all previous senior leaders of the Middle Eastern nation “are dead” and clarifying that his administration is not actively seeking “regime change” but rather a guarantee that “they cannot have nuclear weapons,” Trump indicated that Washington currently maintains a functioning relationship with the ruling leaders in Tehran. He added that he believes the current officials are “much more rational.”
When questioned about the possibility of a total U.S. blockade in the strategic Strait of Hormuz, Trump highlighted that the previous embargo imposed on Iranian ports—which was recently eased following the June 18 memorandum of understanding—was far tighter than a standard blockade. “It wasn’t a blockade, it was a steel wall,” Trump remarked, claiming that “not a single ship managed to reach Iran” under the sanctions regime.
“They have 300% inflation; they are making no money. So, we are going to take part of that money and buy it from them. They need food, corn, wheat, and soybeans, and we are going to make sure it is exclusively our U.S. farmers who supply them—assuming we get to the position we should get to. I think we’re going to make it,” the President declared, adding that Iran has “lost its strength and arrogance.”
While the preliminary agreement moves forward, operational friction points remain. Tehran recently issued statements demanding that all commitments established in the June 18 memorandum be strictly honored, while the Trump administration has pushed for immediate face-to-face meetings between Iranian and American diplomats in Doha, Qatar.
Read more about this topic: Iran rejects meeting with US to discuss nuclear program
The unfolding situation in Lebanon currently stands as the most fragile component of the deal. The diplomatic landscape has complicated significantly after Israel reiterated that it will neither withdraw from southern Lebanon nor cease its active military operations against the Shiite political and militant group Hezbollah. This stance directly clashes with Tehran’s firm insistence that the scope of the agreement sealed with Washington must also encompass conditions affecting Lebanon.
