Trump threatens to strike ‘every power plant and every bridge’ in Iran until peace deal reached as Vance heads to Pakistan | EUROtoday

Donald Trump has threatened to assault Iran’s energy crops and bridges until the regime rapidly agrees to peace phrases, with the delicate ceasefire settlement set to run out inside days.

The president took to social media on Sunday in an effort to deliver Tehran in for talks with new threats in opposition to civilian infrastructure, as Iranian officers mentioned the 2 sides remained far aside on key points.

“We’re offering a very fair and reasonable DEAL, and I hope they take it because, if they don’t, the United States is going to knock out every single Power Plant, and every single Bridge, in Iran. NO MORE MR. NICE GUY!” the president wrote on his Truth social platform.

Trump reportedly instructed Fox News that “the whole country is getting blown up” if Iran turns down the most recent US provide. The feedback got here only a day after Iran’s deputy international minister mentioned they weren’t prepared for a second spherical of direct talks, because the Americans “have not yet abandoned their maximalist position”.

A White House official instructed The Independent that JD Vance can be heading for Islamabad with the standard negotiators, Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner. Pakistan was rolling out new safety measures within the capital in anticipation of their arrival.

Sailors and marines aboard dock touchdown ship USS Rushmore (LSD 47) conduct blockade operations within the Arabian Sea (US Centcom)

Trump was assured that Iran would comply with a deal, telling ABC News: “It will happen, one way or the other. The nice way or the hard way. It’s going to happen.”

There was no fast affirmation from Iran that diplomats would even attend any new talks, nonetheless. The Tasnim information company reported that no resolution had been taken to ship a delegation, with the US blockade of the Strait of Hormuz nonetheless in place.

Iran’s armed forces turned again two gasoline tankers on Sunday after Tehran mentioned it was closing the channel once more, citing the continued US naval blockade to the east. There had been a momentary thawing of tensions on Friday when Iran mentioned it will reopen the strait all through the ceasefire in Lebanon.

Trump mentioned assaults on Saturday in opposition to industrial transport within the strait marked “a total violation of our ceasefire agreement”. He claimed a French ship and a British freighter had been focused, including: “That wasn’t nice, was it?”

The British Ministry of Defence mentioned there had been no reviews of any UK-linked ships coming below hearth within the strait on Saturday, nonetheless.

Donald Trump threatened to reopen assaults on Iran until the regime sits down for talks (AP)

Iran’s prime negotiator, parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, instructed State TV late on Saturday that the Iranian facet felt progress had been made in talks with the US, however that there was nonetheless “a big distance” between the 2 sides.

Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian continued to insist on Iran’s proper to nuclear supplies, after Trump mentioned Iran had already agreed to provide it up.

“Trump says Iran cannot make use of its nuclear rights, but doesn’t say for what crime. Who is he to deprive a nation of its rights?” Pezeshkian mentioned, as reported by the Iranian Student News Agency on Sunday.

With the ceasefire set to expire on Tuesday until a deal is made, European diplomats mentioned that that they had been shut out of discussions and feared the US negotiating staff was dashing into a fast win that would trigger hassle in future.

Eight senior European diplomats with previous expertise of coping with Tehran shared with Reuters their concern for the state of diplomacy, warning that Trump’s staff may find yourself agreeing to a superficial deal that solely makes issues worse afterward.

“The concern isn’t that there won’t be an agreement,” mentioned one of many diplomats. “It’s that there will be a bad initial agreement that creates endless downstream problems.”

A US marine aboard the USS New Orleans displays transport through the US maritime blockade (US Centcom)

Another mentioned resolving the nuclear dispute – which Iran agrees is essentially the most contentious – can be a problem.

“The Americans think you agree on three or four points in a five‑page document and that’s it, but on the nuclear file, every clause opens the door to a dozen more disputes,” a second European diplomat mentioned.

White House spokesperson Anna Kelly dismissed the criticisms, saying: “President Trump has a proven track record of achieving good deals on behalf of the United States and the American people, and he will only accept one that puts America first.”

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/donald-trump-iran-peace-talks-pakistan-b2960630.html