Trump: Talked with Iran – pauses attacks

TT

Updated 15.05 | Published 12.14

           

         US President Donald Trump at the White House in Washington DC on Friday. Photo: Alex                         Brandon/AP/TT

After contacts with Iran, the US will refrain from attacks on Iranian energy targets for five days, President Donald Trump announces.

Iran denies that any negotiations are underway, but Israeli media reports that Egypt, Turkey and Pakistan are mediating between Washington and Tehran.

According to Israeli Keshet 12, the foreign ministers of Egypt, Pakistan and Turkey have been working desperately ahead of the deadline that President Trump had previously set for the night of Tuesday Swedish time. The ministers are said to be in contact with their Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi and Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff, respectively.

Trump himself described on Monday afternoon Swedish time on social media and in interviews “very good and productive” meetings with Iran over the past two days.

Iran’s pro-regime media express a completely different view of the situation. The Fars news agency, which is close to the Revolutionary Guard, describes Trump’s statement as a “retreat after Iran’s clear warning”.

Timed statement

“There are no talks between Tehran and Washington”, writes the Mehr news agency, referring to Iran’s Foreign Ministry. They believe that Trump’s statement is timed to the start of the Western world’s working week “to bring down energy prices”.

Israeli Keshet 12 also warns that Trump’s extension of the deadline does not mean that any agreement is ready. On the other hand, Trump writes that contacts should continue, in the hope of a “complete and total resolution of our hostilities in the Middle East”.

It was on Saturday that the US gave Iran a 48-hour deadline to reopen the Strait of Hormuz for, among other things, the transport of fossil fuels. Otherwise, the US would bomb Iranian power plants, he threatened at the time.

Early on Monday, Iran responded by threatening to mine the Persian Gulf and attack energy facilities in “all areas that supply US bases with electricity”.

Israel informed

In a conversation with CNBC, Trump presents it as if the developments in Iran now amount to “regime change”, even though the Islamist regime remains in power.

According to a source that Reuters spoke to, the US has updated Israel on the talks with Iran, and Israel will “likely” follow the US and pause attacks on energy targets.

On Monday afternoon, however, the Israeli Air Force has launched a new wave of attacks on the capital Tehran, reports The Times of Israel.

Immediately after Trump's announcement of postponed attacks, the price of oil turned downward, and stock markets around the world jumped upward.