Investing.com-- U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday evening that all U.S. ships, aircraft, and military personnel will remain in place around Iran until a “real agreement” is reached with Tehran.
Trump, in a social media post, threatened that the “shootin’ starts” if no agreement was reached, although he saw such a scenario as highly unlikely.
Trump repeated his demands for an agreement entailing “NO NUCLEAR WEAPONS and, the Strait of Hormuz WILL BE OPEN & SAFE,” claiming that such a deal was “agreed a long time ago.”
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Trump’s comments come after the U.S. and Iran agreed to a tentative, two-week ceasefire earlier this week. But Iran almost immediately accused the U.S. and Israel of violating the terms of a 10-point peace proposal.
Tehran also said that planned ceasefire talks in Pakistan were “unreasonable,” and called for Lebanon to be included in a peace deal. Israel continued to attack Lebanon in the late hours of Wednesday.
Trump has repeatedly touted victory over Iran, claiming that the U.S. and Israel had wiped out Iran’s navy and missile capabilities. The president has also claimed to have largely hampered Iran’s nuclear ambitions.
But Tehran has kept up its offensive against U.S., Israel, and the surrounding Gulf countries, and has also kept the Strait of Hormuz– a key shipping channel– largely blocked. Iranian officials have also largely rebuked U.S. calls for the country to cease its uranium enrichment activities.
Direct peace talks between the U.S. and Iran– the first since their conflict began in late-February– are set to take place in Pakistan on Friday. But the main agenda of the talks, as well as the terms of a potential ceasefire, remain largely unclear.
The U.S. launched its largest ever military buildup in the Middle East since 2003 earlier this year, with two aircraft carriers, strike groups, and about 50,000 troops being deployed to the region.
