The US and a group of regional mediators are discussing the possibility high-level peace talks with Iran on Thursday, but they are still waiting for Tehran's response, Axios reported. The US president said on Tuesday that Iran has agreed that it will never acquire nuclear weapons. He also talked about a mysterious gift from the Iranians “related to oil and gas.”
Continued below the video:
US-Iran peace talks in Pakistan?
Donald Trump is interested in ending the war, but Iranian control of the Strait of Hormuz complicates any potential exit strategy. The US presented a 15-point plan to end the war and claimed Iran had agreed to many key points. However, according to Axios, there is no tangible evidence of such an agreement.
As reported by Axios and Reuters a meeting of the American and Iranian delegations in Pakistan could take place this week.
If the summit plans are confirmed, Vice President J.D. Vance will likely be involved. “But it's not clear if there's anything to engage in. Everyone's trying to figure out if it's true,” a source told Axios.
See also: Mysterious transactions just before Donald Trump's entry. “This is really not normal”
Donald Trump just wants to calm the markets?
Meanwhile some Iranian officials say Donald Trump is just trying to calm markets and gain time to implement his military plans.
The United States is also preparing options for a potential escalation. According to media reports Pentagon considering ground operation and the landing on Iran.
The command of the 82nd Airborne Division was ordered deployment of a brigade of several thousand soldiers in the Middle East.
See also: Iran has stopped gas supplies to Turkey. This isn't the first time
Donald Trump on the mysterious gift from Iran. “Related to oil and gas”
On Tuesday, Donald Trump spoke about a mysterious gift from the Iranians, suggesting that the gift helped in diplomatic efforts to end the war.
“They gave us a gift that arrived today. It was a very large gift, worth a huge amount of money, and I won't tell you what the gift was, but it was a very significant reward,” Trump told reporters on Tuesday, as quoted by CNN.
The president added that the gift is “related to oil and gas.” “It was related to the flow, to the Strait.” he said, referring to the Strait of Hormuz, a key oil route that has been effectively closed.
Trump said the gift showed that Iranian negotiators talking to his administration were willing to keep their promises.
US President on nuclear weapons in Iran and regime change
“We really have a regime change. You know, it's a regime change itself because all the leaders are completely different than the ones we started with and who created all these problems,” Trump said.
The US president said Iran agreed it would never acquire nuclear weapons.
Is Iran tightening its course?
In turn, an analyst quoted by CNN claims that the election of Iran's new top security official indicates a more aggressive stance by Iran
Iran's decision to appoint Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr – a supporter of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojta Khamenei – as the new head of the country's security services shows that Khamenei is consolidating his power.
Source: Axios, Reuters, CNN
