US President Donald Trump said his administration’s negotiations with Iran were “in the final stages” on Wednesday, while simultaneously warning of further attacks, as a fragile ceasefire concluded its sixth week with no sign of an end to the war.
The US launched “Operation Epic Fury” close to three months ago, in a war that began with strikes inside Iran alongside key ally Israel, which has since spread across the wider Middle East region, killing thousands and disrupting global supply chains.
“We’re in the final stages of Iran. We’ll see what happens. Either have a deal or we’re going to do some things that are a little bit nasty, but hopefully that won’t happen,” Trump told reporters on Wednesday.
“Ideally, I’d like to see few people killed, as opposed to a lot. We can do it either way.”
When Trump was asked at Joint Base Andrews near Washington about where negotiations with Iran stood, he said: “It’s right on the borderline, believe me”.
“If we don’t get the right answers, it goes very quickly. We’re all ready to go. We have to get the right answers – it would have to be a complete 100 per cent good answers,” he said.
Trump said Iran making a deal could happen “very quickly, or [in] a few days”, adding that it would save “a lot of time, energy and lives”.
Additionally, Trump warned Tehran of further attacks unless it agrees to a peace deal when he spoke at the US Coast Guard Academy.
“We may have to hit them very hard ... but maybe not,” he said, while reiterating that he was determined not to allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon. Trump has cited dismantling Iran’s nuclear programme as one of the key aims of the war.
Earlier this week, Trump said he had been just an hour away from ordering more strikes but called off attacks at the last minute in response to appeals from Iran’s Gulf neighbours.
Meanwhile, Iran accused Trump of plotting to restart the conflict, threatening a broader war extending beyond the region, in a statement by the Revolutionary Guards.
“If aggression against Iran is repeated, the promised regional war will extend beyond the region this time,” the statement read.
Peace talks remain ongoing between Washington and Tehran, with both sides continuing to communicate through Pakistani mediators.
Investor optimism over negotiations lifted Treasuries and eased pressure on energy markets on Wednesday, with hopes that talks could lead to an agreement after months of war.
The disruption to the Strait of Hormuz, through which one-fifth of the world’s oil transits, has created one of the biggest shocks to worldwide energy supplies in history.
The global artery has been largely shut by Iran since the US and Israel conducted the first round of military strikes in late February.
Two giant Chinese tankers carrying a total of 4 million barrels of oil exited the strait on Wednesday after Iran agreed to ease rules for Chinese ships while Trump was in Beijing for a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping last week. -- SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
