The Iranian crisis. Tehran rejects the US demands, but wants to negotiate “on an equal footing”. Trump's last reaction and the game Turkey is playing
Aircraft carrier USS “Abraham Lincoln”, Photo: Wikipedia
Iran's defense and ballistic capabilities “will never be the subject of negotiations”, warned Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Aragchi during a visit to Turkey, where he met with his counterpart Hakan Fidan. Turkey wants to play the role of facilitator between the United States and Iran, but success seems remote for the time being given that Tehran does not want to negotiate exactly the main demands of the USA
After warning that time was “counting” before an attack on Iran, President Donald Trump said Thursday that he “hopes” he will not have to order a strike if Tehran accepts a deal on its nuclear arsenal.
Araghci replied, in Istanbul, that his country is prepared for negotiations on “equal footing”, stating that “Iranian defense capabilities and missiles” will not be on the discussion table.
The three conditions rejected by Iran
“The security of the Iranian people does not concern anyone else,” the Iranian foreign minister insisted in a press conference, while also stating that there is currently no scheduled meeting with United States officials.
Accompanied by warships, USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier arrived in the Middle East
US officials cited by Axios had said any deal with Tehran would have to include Iran giving up its enriched uranium, capping its stockpile of long-range missiles and a change in policy towards some armed groups in the region, a demand that includes Hezbollah, Hamas and the Houthi rebels.
Turkey is trying to avoid a US military intervention in Iran, while accusing Israel of trying to persuade Washington to use force.
“We find that Israel is trying to convince the United States to launch a military attack on Iran (…) We hope that the American administration will show sound judgment,” said Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan.
Washington is trying to find out Iran's nerve points. Secret meetings with key US allies
Erdogan's fears
Turkey wants to avoid at all costs an armed conflict that could bring a wave of migrants to its 550 km border with Iran. As a precaution, Turkey is preparing to “strengthen border security” with Iran, a senior Turkish official told AFP.
Turkey's desire to be “a facilitator” of dialogue between Washington and Tehran is also shown by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's personal involvement in organizing a US-Iran-Turkey trilateral meeting. In this direction, Erdogan had a conversation with Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian, who also refused to negotiate under American threats.
Ankara fears another war on its borders as the post-civil war situation in Syria remains volatile.
The atmosphere is all the more tense as the European Union has decided to include Iran's Revolutionary Guards on the list of terrorist organizations, due to its involvement in the repression directed against the recent demonstrations in the country, resulting in thousands of deaths.
However, Donald Trump still hopes not to resort to force. In a brief statement on the subject on Friday, the US president said Iran wants to reach an agreement, but declined to give details.
Asked if he had given the Iranians a deadline, he said yes. “They themselves know it for sure,” said the White House leader.
“Let's hope we reach an agreement. If so, so much the better. If not, we'll see what happens,” added Trump.
