Iran says it “cannot trust” U.S. in negotiations as Trump says “we control” strait

What you need to know about the Iran war today Speaking on Friday, President Trump stated that the Strait of Hormuz is under the control of the USA, not Iran, and said, “We actually destroyed their armed forces.” Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said on Friday that his country “cannot trust the Americans at all” and that Iran was “trying to maintain” the “shaky” ceasefire to give diplomacy a chance. It is capable of confronting the world’s greatest powers.” German Chancellor: Iran should not be allowed to have nuclear weapons

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said in a statement after his meeting with President Trump on Friday that Iran “should not be allowed to have nuclear weapons” and “must come to the negotiating table now.”

One Publish on XMerz said he had a “good phone call” with Mr. Trump on his return trip from China.

“We agree: Iran must now come to the negotiation table. It must open the Strait of Hormuz,” he said.

“Tehran should not be allowed to have nuclear weapons,” Merz added.

Iran welcomes China’s help in resolving conflicts, foreign minister says

Iran is open to any support, including from China, to help resolve the conflict in the Middle East, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Friday.

“We appreciate any country that has the ability to help, especially China,” he told reporters in the Indian capital, where he was attending a meeting of the bloc of BRICS countries.

“We have very good relations with China, we are each other’s strategic partners and we know that the Chinese have good intentions, so anything that can be done by them to assist diplomacy will be welcomed by the Islamic Republic,” he said.

Israeli army calls for evacuation to residents of 5 villages in southern Lebanon

The Israeli military called on residents of five villages in southern Lebanon on Friday to immediately evacuate ahead of expected attacks on Hezbollah, despite a ceasefire with Lebanon aimed at halting fighting.

“In light of terrorist Hezbollah’s violation of the ceasefire agreement, the Defense Army was forced to act forcefully against it,” Avichay Adraee, the army’s Arabic-language spokesman, posted on X. he said, listing five villages near the city of Tire on the coast of southern Lebanon.

“For your safety, you must evacuate your homes immediately and stay at least 1000 meters away from villages and towns,” he said.

Trump: We control the Strait of Hormuz

On Friday, US President Trump stated that they were in control of the Strait of Hormuz and said, “We actually destroyed their armed forces.”

“We control the Strait,” Mr. Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One after his summit with Chinese President Xi. [of Hormuz]and they didn’t do any work… so we’re doing very well in every aspect.

“We don’t need favors,” he added. “We actually destroyed their armed forces.”

“We may need to do a little cleaning work,” he added. “Because we had a short ceasefire that lasted a month, I guess you could call it, but we had a very effective blockade, so we had the ceasefire.”

Mr. Trump added that his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, “felt strongly” that Iran should not have nuclear weapons and “asked them to open the strait.”

The president also said he felt positive about suspending Iran’s nuclear program for 20 years, but only if there was a “real” commitment from Tehran.

Iran’s foreign minister said: “We absolutely cannot trust the Americans”

Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said on Friday that his country “cannot trust the Americans in any way” and that they are “trying to maintain” the “shaky” ceasefire “to give diplomacy a chance.”

Speaking at a press conference in New Delhi during the ongoing BRICS summit, Araghchi added that the Strait of Hormuz “is open and all ships can pass, except those belonging to “countries that are at war with us”.

“We are currently in a ceasefire, although it is very shaky,” he said. “But we are trying to continue this to give diplomacy a chance so that a diplomatic solution based on negotiations can be found.”

He called the lack of trust in the United States “the fundamental obstacle to any diplomatic effort.”

“We cannot trust the Americans at all,” he said. “Everything needs to be precisely and clearly defined before any agreement is reached.”

“Every day brings a different message, sometimes even two different messages in one day, which deepens distrust.”

Iranian army chief says they will defend country “until the last drop of blood”

The commander of the Iranian army said that Iranian soldiers will defend the country “until the last drop of blood”.

In the statements made by almost everyone state mediaCommander-in-Chief of the Iranian army, Major General Amir Hatami, said that “with all our being, until the last drop of blood and until complete victory is achieved with the permission of God, our troops will continue our sacred mission of defending” the territorial integrity and “independence of the country.”

“The issue of the death of our fighters has been resolved,” he added. “We fight for victory, but we also see martyrdom as a great blessing.”

Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran “is the winner of this war”

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi claims that “Iran is the winner of this war” and says that the country should now be seen as capable of “confronting the world’s greatest powers”.

In a video posted on the Telegram channel on Friday, Araghchi told state television: “All countries now recognize that the Islamic Republic of Iran is the winner of this war.”

“Iran has managed to prevent its enemies from achieving their goals and has managed to impose its will,” he added.

“From now on, Iran should be viewed differently as a power capable of confronting the world’s greatest powers,” he said.

He also doubled down on his condemnation of the UAE, which “sided with the United States and Israel during this war” by providing “airspace, land, facilities and services to US forces.”

Araghchi added that Tehran and Abu Dhabi “should see security in regional cooperation, not in dependence on forces from outside the region.”

Trump says he and China’s Xi “feel very similar on Iran”

As his summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping drew to a close on Friday, President Trump told reporters that the two leaders “feel very similar on Iran” and share a desire to end the Iran war.

Mr. Trump noted that both countries want the Strait of Hormuz, a key chokepoint through which 20% of the world’s oil passes, to be reopened, and both want to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons.

After his meeting with Xi on Thursday, Mr. Trump told Fox News that Xi had said he would not give Iran any military equipment, which the U.S. president called a “big statement.” Time will tell whether Xi will follow through. Mr. Trump also told Fox News that Xi wants to help China reopen. Strait of HormuzIt has been effectively closed since the start of the US war with Iran in late February. China is Iran’s largest oil customer.

Trump said Xi told him that China would not give military equipment to Iran: “This is a big statement”

President Trump said in an interview with Fox News’ Sean Hannity from Beijing on Thursday: their peakChinese President Xi Jinping has assured that China will not provide military equipment to Iran for its war in the Middle East.

Asked by Hannity how big of a discussion the two leaders had about China’s support for Iran, Mr. Trump said: “We discussed that. When you say support, they support it.” [China] “We’re not making war with us or anything.”

According to Mr Trump, Xi told him he “won’t give it” [Iran] military equipment. That’s a big statement. He said this today. That’s a big statement. “He said it powerfully.”

Last month, CBS News reported It was stated that US intelligence agencies detected signs that China is considering whether to provide advanced radar systems to the Iranian regime.

Mr. Trump said Xi also told him how dependent China is on oil and gas imports from Iran.

“But they also get most of their oil from there and they want to continue doing that,” Mr. Trump said. He “wants to see the Strait of Hormuz opened,” adding that Xi “doesn’t like the Strait of Hormuz being opened.” [Iran] charging toll. I don’t know if they are or not.”

By the way to analysts Early in the war, Iran was using Larak Island, located a few miles off the Iranian coast, as a toll for tankers, according to maritime intelligence firm Lloyd’s List.

Per Congressional U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission reports that China purchases approximately 90% of the oil exported by Iran.

And accordingly Before the Iran war, China imported 70% of its oil and gas, most of which came from the Persian Gulf, according to analysis by Det Norske Veritas, an independent global assurance and risk management provider.

Trump says he ‘won’t be any more patient’ on Iran deal

President Trump said in an interview with Fox News that he “won’t be any more patient” about a possible peace deal with Iran.

“I’m not going to be patient any longer,” Mr. Trump told Fox News’ Sean Hannity on Thursday. “They should make a deal.”

Afterwards gather up At the summit in Beijing, Mr Trump said Chinese President Xi Jinping “wanted to see an agreement reached”.

“He said, ‘If I can be of any help, I want to help.’ Obviously anyone who buys that much oil has some sort of relationship, but he would like to see the Strait of Hormuz open,” Mr. Trump told Hannity.

CENTCOM chief says Iran’s control over the strait has weakened but threats remain

The head of US forces in the Middle East told senators that the bombing campaign against Iran, called Operation Epic Rage, had achieved all of its goals of “significantly weakening” the country’s military capabilities, even as Tehran continues to demand control of the Strait of Hormuz.

Adm. Brad Cooper of U.S. Central Command told the Senate Armed Services Committee that U.S. forces have destroyed more than 90% of Iran’s inventory of 8,000 naval mines to prevent them from being deployed in the strait. But he acknowledged that Iran still has some capabilities to threaten ships.

“Iran’s ability to shut down trade has been dramatically reduced by the straits, but their voices are very loud and these threats are clearly heard by the business sector and the insurance industry,” Cooper said Thursday. he said.

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Trump says Xi wants to see deal reached with Iran and offer help

President Trump said Thursday that Chinese President Xi Jinping see a deal Iran facilitated the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and offered assistance.

“President Xi wants to see a deal get done,” Mr. Trump told Fox News host Sean Hannity. “He wants to see a deal done. He made an offer and said: ‘If I can be of any help, I want to help, too.'”

“Look, obviously everyone who bought that much oil had some sort of relationship with them, but he said: ‘If I can help in any way, I want to help.’ “Mr. Trump wants to see the Strait of Hormuz open,” he said. “He said, ‘If I can be of any help, I want to help.'”