Middle East Crisis Reactions

Analysis: Trump openly threatens to commit war crimes

Blowing up power plants and bridges, as Donald Trump is threatening to do in Iran, is a war crime according to all international agreements and conventions. This is what Tom Bateman writes for the BBC.

“The deliberate destruction of energy infrastructure can have a devastating impact on civilian lives, even if the argument is that the power plants also fulfill military and governmental functions.”

The clock is ticking down towards the end of the ceasefire on Wednesday, and there is still no confirmation of new talks or signs of progress on the key issues, writes CNN's Tim Lister.

“Rather, the gap seems to have widened – Iran is trying to take an even tighter grip on the Strait of Hormuz and Trump is sticking to the US blockade against ships using Iranian ports.”

European leaders are worried that inexperienced U.S. negotiators are rushing to hammer out a headline-grabbing peace deal with Iran that will exacerbate rather than solve more complex problems, write John Irish and Parisa Hafezi for Reuters.

“They fear that Washington, eager to score a diplomatic victory for Donald Trump, will strike a superficial deal on Iran’s nuclear program and sanctions relief, only to drag itself through months and years of technically complex follow-up talks.”

Expert: US's schizophrenic demands are making talks difficult

Iran has a point when they accuse the US of constant contradictions and mixed messages, security analyst Ian Ralby tells Sky News.

In just a couple of weeks, Trump's statements have varied between "we don't need the Strait of Hormuz", "the Strait is open" and "we will destroy your entire civilization with apocalyptic violence", he continues.

- The somewhat schizophrenic rhetoric from Washington is difficult to understand, and it is really difficult to see what the ultimate goals are with this whole conflict.

Trump enjoys this, continues Ralby - the unpredictable behavior is his way of trying to get his way in the world.