Republican hawks warn of ‘disastrous mistake’ as Trump nears deal with Iran | US-Israel war on Iran
Republican hawks have issued a rare rebuke to Donald Trump over his planned peace deal with Iran, calling it a “disaster” and questioning why the US president started the war.
Trump’s allies, who strongly backed his controversial decision to order war on Iran alongside Israel, urged him this weekend to “hold the line” despite rising economic costs and no sign of progress on many of the initial goals set by his administration.
While the Iranian government was apparently in a jubilant mood, members of Trump’s own party responded angrily to reports that the proposed deal included major concessions from Washington.
Roger Wicker, who chairs the Senate armed services committee, said “rumors of a 60-day ceasefire” would be a “disaster.” to mail on social media. “Everything achieved by Operation Epic Rage will be in vain,” he added.
Trump, who suggested a deal could be reached on Saturday, backtracked on Sunday morning after an angry reaction from parts of his party. Emphasizing that the talks were proceeding in an “orderly and constructive” manner, the president added: “I informed my representatives not to rush to reach an agreement as long as it is on our side.”
Trump claimed on Saturday that a memorandum of understanding to end the war had been “substantially negotiated” and was awaiting finalization. In his statement on the Truth Social platform, the US president said that the agreement will also include the opening of the Strait of Hormuz, which is an important transit point for global trade and which Iran has effectively closed since the US and Israel started the war in February.
But the US president made no mention of Iran’s nuclear program and highly enriched uranium, even though he repeatedly insisted that Tehran’s abandonment of any nuclear ambitions was a “red line” in negotiations to end the war. Iranian officials attempted to negotiate these issues at a later date.
The peace draft includes extending the ceasefire for 60 days and reopening the Strait of Hormuz during this period. to Axios. Iran would agree to clear the mines it had deployed in the strait and allow ships to pass freely, and in return, the United States would lift the naval blockade of Iranian ports. During this period, Iran would be able to sell oil freely and negotiations could be held on the nuclear issue.
Washington’s apparent concessions have raised alarm among many Republican foreign policy hawks.
Senator Lindsey Graham, a close Trump ally, warned: “If a deal is made to end the Iran conflict because the Strait of Hormuz is believed to be unsafe from Iranian terrorism and Iran is still thought to have the capacity to destroy the Gulf’s crucial oil infrastructure, then Iran will be perceived as a dominant power requiring a diplomatic solution.”
Graham suggested that Iran’s perception that it could “terrorize” the Strait of Hormuz and its ability to damage oil infrastructure in the Gulf “will lead to a major shift in the balance of power in the region and, over time, will become a nightmare for Israel.”
“Also, if these perceptions are true, it becomes a question of why the war started,” he added, emphasizing that the United States must “get this right.”
Tom Cotton, who chairs the Senate intelligence committee, reposted Graham’s comments, while Texas senator Ted Cruz said he was “deeply concerned” by reports about the emerging deal.
“If the result of all this is an Iranian regime led by Islamists who still chant ‘Death to America,’ receiving billions of dollars, being able to enrich uranium, developing nuclear weapons, and having effective control over the Strait of Hormuz, then that outcome would be a disastrous mistake,” Cruz said. wrote In X.
Trump must “continue to hold the line, defend America, and enforce the red lines he has drawn over and over again,” he said.
Responding to a Trump supporter who criticized his position and said he “didn’t ask anyone’s opinion,” Cruz said the “young political hustlers trying to appease Iran are not even remotely helpful to the President.”
Criticizing Trump’s agenda often leads to a swift response from the president and his top officials.
In his second statement Sunday, Senator Graham welcomed “President Trump’s wonderful offer” that suggested many countries in the Middle East could join the Abraham Accords, which brokered diplomatic agreements in 2020 in which many Arab countries agreed to recognize Israel.
“This is a great move by President Trump,” Graham said, publicly warning countries, including Saudi Arabia, that not joining the agreements would be a “major miscalculation.”
Mike Pompeo, who served as secretary of state and CIA director during the first Trump administration, harshly criticized the agreement presented to the public, saying, “It is not far from America First.”
harshly to mail On X, he compared the terms to those of the 2015 nuclear deal negotiated by the Obama administration that Trump later abandoned and long rebuked.
“It’s very simple,” Pompeo said. “Open the damn strait. Deny Iran access to money. Eliminate enough Iranian capacity so it doesn’t threaten our allies in the region. It’s due. Let’s go.”
Trump’s current secretary of state, Marco Rubio, touted the “significant” progress on Sunday. “I think there’s a chance the world will get some good news, perhaps in the next few hours,” Rubio told reporters during a diplomatic visit to India.
