Al through this mash-up with Iran Donny has made statement after statement and none have proven to be true…..so far….and as if right on cue another of his BS statements.
President Trump on Monday suggested that peace talks were making progress, but he also threatened to expand bombardment of Iran should those talks collapse. In a Truth Social post, Trump said the US was negotiating with a “new, and more reasonable, regime,” but he warned that a deal must happen quickly and demanded that the Strait of Hormuz be opened immediately, reports NBC News. If not, the US will end its military campaign by “blowing up and completely obliterating” Iran’s electricity plants, oil wells, and the vital energy hub of Kharg Island, he wrote. The US also might hit Iran’s desalination plants, he added.
The nature of the new negotiations was not immediately clear: Pakistan is hosting a forum of regional neighbors, though neither Iran nor the US was participating. A spokesman for the current Iranian regime, meanwhile, made clear that Tehran has had “no direct negotiations with the US,” reports the BBC. Esmail Baghaei also accused the US of “constantly” shifting its public positions. “I do not know how many in the United States take the claim of American diplomacy seriously,” he said. Still, Trump’s comments on progress have boosted optimism on Wall Street, notes CNBC, with Dow futures up more than 300 points. On Sunday, Trump also said Tehran agreed to let an additional 20 ships traverse the strait as a “sign of respect” to the US, per the New York Times.
And the markets love his statement….of course they.
But if these talks are going so well why is there a massive troop build up?
The US troop presence in the Middle East has quietly swelled to a level not seen in decades, now hovering above 50,000. The latest additions: 2,500 Marines from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit and 2,500 sailors, plus about 2,000 paratroopers from the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division, all moving into position as President Trump weighs his next moves in his month-old war in Iran, per the New York Times. Typically, about 40,000 US personnel are spread across bases and ships in countries including Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Qatar, and the UAE. The buildup comes as Washington considers more aggressive steps to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint for about a fifth of global oil shipments that has been largely shut by Iranian retaliation.
The Pentagon is gearing up for weeks of ground operations in the country should Trump approve, per the Washington Post. Options reportedly include seizing territory such as Kharg Island, Iran’s key oil export hub. While analysts note that 50,000 troops would be far too few for a large-scale ground campaign in a country the size and population of Iran, special operations raids are possible, officials tell the Post. This would mark a new phase of the war, one “significantly more dangerous to US troops than the first four weeks,” per the outlet. More than 13 US service members have already been killed, with more than 300 wounded, including at least 15 injured in a Friday attack on a Saudi air base, reports PBS. A recent AP-NORC poll finds 62% of respondents strongly opposed to the use of ground troops in Iran, with only 12% in favor.
The mix of BS and troops leads me to believe that he is just waiting to strike.
Then Donny makes a statement that smacks of a war crime to me….
President Trump on Monday added Iran’s desalination plants to the list of infrastructure he may “blow up” if a deal isn’t reached to end the war, threatening attacks on the country’s water supply, a clear war crime under international law.
“The United States of America is in serious discussions with A NEW, AND MORE REASONABLE, REGIME to end our Military Operations in Iran,” President Trump wrote on Truth Social, though Iran continues to deny negotiations are taking place.
“Great progress has been made but, if for any reason a deal is not shortly reached, which it probably will be, and if the Hormuz Strait is not immediately ‘Open for Business,’ we will conclude our lovely ‘stay’ in Iran by blowing up and completely obliterating all of their Electric Generating Plants, Oil Wells and Kharg Island (and possibly all desalinization plants!), which we have purposefully not yet ‘touched,’” Trump added.
(antiwar.com)
The Straight….
President Trump is signaling to aides he’s ready to declare victory over Iran without fully reopening one of the world’s most critical oil routes, according to sources who spoke to the Wall Street Journal. Administration officials tell reporters Trump has privately said he’s prepared to wind down the US campaign within four to six weeks after degrading Iran’s navy and missile arsenal, even if the Strait of Hormuz remains only partially usable. That would effectively leave Iran with significant leverage over a passageway that carries about a fifth of global oil and gas, already driving up energy prices and squeezing industries worldwide. The White House says restoring normal traffic isn’t a core military goal for now, with Trump hoping diplomacy—or later, a coalition led by US allies—will eventually secure the waterway, sources say.
Sounds like he is looking for a way out.
This will be a devastating conflict when Donny makes up his mind….and you and I will be paying for his stupidity for years to come even if the conflict was to end soon.
Makes me ill.
I Read, I Write, You Know
“lego ergo scribo”