Donald Trump has taken a chilling swipe at Iran as the row over the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and talks around a possible peace deal explodes. The taunt from the US President comes hours before US and Iranian negotiators are scheduled to meet in Pakistan in a last-ditch attempt to thrash out a peace deal and end the strikes in the Middle East.
On Tuesday, Trump agreed to a two-week ceasefire at the 11th hour after weeks relentless air strikes from both sides. This was announced just hours after the US President had furiously threatened to end Iranian civilisation. But just hours before peace talks are due to get underway, he has taken to Truth Social to write: « The Iranians don’t seem to realize they have no cards, other than a short term extortion of the World by using International Waterways. The only reason they are alive today is to negotiate! President DONALD J. TRUMP. »
Just a minuite earlier, Mr Trump had also posted on Truth Social: « The Iranians are better at handling the Fake News Media, and ‘Public Relations,’ than they are at fighting! »
Earlier today, Vice President JD Vance warned the Iranian regime not to « try to play us » before heading to Pakistan for the crunch peace talks.
Leaving for Islamabad, where the talks are going to take place tomorrow (April 11), he said: « if the Iranians are willing to negotiate in good faith, we’re certainly willing to extend the open hand.
« If they’re going to try to play us, then they’re going to find that the negotiating team is not that receptive. »
Special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are attending the talks on behalf of the US.
Iran’s ambassador to Pakistan Reza Amiri Moghadam had said in a post on X that an Iranian delegation would arrive in Islamabad on Thursday night for talks.
Separately, Islamic Republic Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi condemnded the ongoing fighting between Israel and Iranian-backed Hezbollah forces in Lebanon.
Posting on X, he said: « The Iran–U.S ceasefire terms are clear and explicit: the US must choose—ceasefire or continued war via Israel. It cannot have both.
« The world sees the massacres in Lebanon. The ball is in the US court, and the world is watching whether it will act on its commitments. »
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