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The US and Iran continue to clash over terms despite an agreement to end the war
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Donald Trump threatened on Wednesday to abandon talks with Iran if it tries to impose tolls or other charges on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, as both sides continue to diverge on issues key to peace talks.
The US president said that Iran had informed the US that, despite reports to the contrary, there are “NO TOLLS, NO INSURANCE COSTS, & NO OTHER CHARGES OF ANY KIND BEING SOUGHT OR RECEIVED BY IRAN ON SHIPS TRAVELING THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ”.
“If this is false information, negotiations would end immediately,” Trump said in a post on social media. He went on to insist that the US would buy American food to send to Iran using frozen Iranian funds, after Iran said they would determine their spending.
Iran and the United States signed a 14-point memorandum of understanding last week setting out broad agreements in principle to end the war. The interim accord paved the way for 60 days of talks aimed at hammering out thornier details, including issues related to Iran’s nuclear programme.
Iran’s deputy foreign minister said on Wednesday that access to Iranian nuclear sites for inspections would only be addressed in the framework of a final agreement and after practical steps are taken to lift sanctions, after the US indicated Iran had agreed to allow inspections to resume.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent echoed President Donald Trump on Wednesday and insisted that a large percentage of Iran’s unfrozen assets would be used to buy US foods and medicine even as Iran says it would determine its spending.
Bessent, in an interview on CNBC, added that the U.S. Department of Treasury would have an operation in Doha to oversee the funds.
Qatar’s prime minister visited Muscat on Wednesday for talks with Oman on setting up negotiations involving Iran, Iraq and Gulf Arab states on the reopening and future operation of the Strait of Hormuz, a diplomat briefed on the talks told Reuters.
The discussions are separate from U.S.-Iran peace talks and de-mining arrangements, and Gulf states are expected to push for no transit fees while Iran could propose environmental, navigation and security fees, the diplomat said.
In a new post on Truth Social, Donald Trump says that talks will end “immediately” if Iran does try to impose tolls or the like on ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
He also claims that no money has been given to Iran, but indicates the US will release some frozen assets controlled by the US to American farmers and ranchers to buy food “desperately needed” in Iran.
“We will be purchasing it for them exclusively from the United States,” he claims.
The US Senate backed legislation on Tuesday directing Donald Trump to halt US military action against Iran, the latest rebuke of the Republican president from an increasingly restive Congress.
The Senate voted 50-48 in favor of the war powers resolution, which passed the House of Representatives early this month, reflecting growing concern even among Republicans about the unpopular conflict.
It was the first time both chambers of Congress had passed a resolution directing a president to remove US armed forces from hostilities since the War Powers Resolution, more commonly known as the War Powers Act, was enacted in 1973.
While likely to remain largely symbolic, the vote was a setback for Trump, who until recently had enjoyed near-unanimous support from Republican members of Congress.
It also comes as the administration is expected to ask Congress to authorize tens of billions of dollars to pay for the war.
Talks between Israel and Lebanon include discussion of a US-backed proposal for Israeli forces to hand over some of the territory they have invaded to the Lebanese military, according to Israeli and Lebanese officials.
The Israeli officials said the Lebanese troops involved would undergo US training and vetting to ensure they are not linked to Iran-backed Hezbollah, while Israel would maintain a military presence in a buffer zone along the border.
The proposed “pilot” project is being discussed in the latest round of talks between Lebanese and Israeli officials, which got underway in Washington on Tuesday.
Rejected by Hezbollah, this diplomatic track has been overshadowed as Tehran has made Lebanon a focal point of its negotiations with the US.
Asked about the Israeli officials’ comments, a senior Lebanese security official said discussions were ongoing in Washington and that Wednesday would see specific military-to-military discussions, including on the pilot zones.
The Lebanese official said the discussions would focus on a timeline for withdrawal and that any plan would emerge only after the final day of talks on Thursday. The official did not respond to a request for comment on the Israeli officials’ account of U.S. vetting of Lebanese troops.
Iran’s parliamentary speaker said on Wednesday regional countries alone should determine the Middle East’s political and security order, rejecting external involvement and calling for expanded intra-regional cooperation.
Mohammad Baqer Ghalibaf made his remarks at a meeting of the Parliamentary Union of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, as Iran and the United States seek to conclude a lasting peace agreement.
His comments were broadcast on state television.
Israel’s defence minister Israel Katz insists that Israel will not withdraw from south Lebanon even if the US demands it.
Questions around access to Iran’s nuclear sites and materials will only be discussed in a final deal with the US, after steps are taken to lift US sanctions, deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi said today.
The head of the US nuclear watchdog director had said earlier on Wednesday that he expects inspections in Iran soon under the interim understanding linked to talks, but details are yet to be finalised.
“Media noise cannot be used to impose facts on the ground,” Gharibabadi said in a post on X.
The deal between Iran and the US to end the war is “America’s declaration of defeat”, Iran’s top negotiator said on Wednesday.
Speaking at a conference in Azerbaijan, the outspoken parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said the initial agreement to stop the fighting and begin talks “was not the result of pressure and coercion, but rather the result of the resistance and authority of the brave Iranian nation”.
“That is why, the Islamabad memorandum of understanding became a declaration of America’s defeat,” he said, adding that Middle Eastern countries should be responsible for security in the region.
The two sides signed a 14-point memorandum of understanding last week setting out broad agreements in principle to end the war. The interim accord paved the way for 60 days of talks aimed at hammering out thornier details, including issues related to Iran’s nuclear programme.
Still discrepancies hang over the talks as the UN’s nuclear watchdog on Wednesday said it would resume inspections of Iranian nuclear facilities, after Iran said it had made no such concession.
Iran and the US have also offered conflicting accounts on financial incentives for Iran, control of the Strait of Hormuz and the war in Lebanon since ending a first round of talks in Switzerland on Monday.
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