Trump urges Iran to ‘get smart’ and sign a deal
US President Donald Trump is calling on Iran to “act smart as soon as possible” and sign an agreement after days of stalemate in efforts to end the conflict, and there is a media report that the US is preparing to expand the blockade of Iranian ports.
In a post published on Truth Social, Trump said that Iran could call if it wanted to talk and repeatedly emphasized that Tehran could not have nuclear weapons, and said that the country “could not act together.”
The Wall Street Journal quoted US officials as saying that the president had instructed his aides to prepare for a prolonged blockade of Iranian ports to force Tehran to surrender.
Officials said Trump chose to continue squeezing Iran’s economy and oil exports with a blockade because other options — continuing the bombing or moving away from the conflict — carried more risks, according to the WSJ.
“They don’t know how to sign a non-nuclear agreement. They better get smart soon!” Trump said in his post on Wednesday, without explaining what such a deal would include.
Iran wants some form of recognition of the United States’ right to enrich uranium for peaceful and civilian purposes.
There is a stockpile of approximately 440 kilograms of uranium enriched to 60 percent; If this material is further enriched, it can be used for many nuclear weapons.
Iranian officials said Tuesday that the country can withstand the blockade because it uses alternative trade routes and that the Islamic Republic does not consider the war to be over.
The conflict has killed thousands, thrown energy markets into turmoil and disrupted global trade routes.
Iran’s latest offer to resolve the two-month war, which has been suspended since April 8 under a ceasefire deal, would put aside discussions about its nuclear program until the conflict is officially over and shipping issues are resolved.
However, this proposal did not meet Trump’s demand that the nuclear issue be discussed from the beginning.
Tehran has largely blocked all but its own shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a transit point for global energy supplies from the Gulf, since the war began on February 28.
In April, the United States began blockading Iranian ships.
Trump’s Truth Social post included a mock-up photo of himself wearing dark glasses and wielding a machine gun, with the caption “No More Mr. Nice Guy.”
Hopes for a quick resolution to the conflict have faded since Trump last weekend canceled a visit to Pakistan by his special envoy Steve Witkoff and his son-in-law Jared Kushner to mediate.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi visited the country twice during the weekend of April 25-26.
Because so many senior Iranian political and military figures have been killed in US-Israeli attacks, Iran no longer has a single, undisputed cleric arbiter at the pinnacle of power; This may be hardening Tehran’s negotiating stance.
Iranian officials and analysts say the killing of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on the first day of the war and the installation of his wounded son Mojtaba as religious leader gave the Islamic Revolutionary Guard’s hardline commanders more power.
Trump is under domestic pressure to end a war for which he has offered varying justifications to the US public.
His approval rating has fallen to an all-time low, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll, as Americans increasingly sour on his stance on the cost of living and the unpopular war.
Oil prices rose nearly 3 percent on Wednesday, with the Brent contract hitting a one-month high on concerns that a prolonged blockade of Iranian ports would prolong supply disruptions.
