Latest news with #UnitedStates-Iran
The Age
2 days ago
- Politics
- The Age
Trump desperately wants to play ‘peacemaker'. This is the time to prove he can
Witkoff had sought unsuccessfully to persuade Netanyahu to remain patient while United States-Iran negotiations proceeded. Those talks have been deadlocked. Some Trump allies privately acknowledge that his diplomatic efforts were faltering even before Israel's attack. His second term in office started with what seemed like a foreign policy win. Shortly before Trump's inauguration, Witkoff worked with aides to then-president Joe Biden to secure a long-sought ceasefire in Gaza between Israel and Hamas militants. But that accord fell apart within weeks. The US has also made little discernible progress towards a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine, whose conflict Trump vowed to end before even taking office. And his administration has taken no visible steps towards expanding the Abraham Accords, a landmark pact brokered in Trump's first term to forge diplomatic ties between Israel and several Arab neighbours. Loading 'Spiral of escalation' As Trump has struggled to seal peace accords, foreign policy divisions have opened inside his own administration. Dozens of officials, from the National Security Council to the Pentagon and the State Department, have been jettisoned amid the infighting. Even before Israel's attack, several administration officials had begun to privately question if Witkoff, who lacks diplomatic experience but has emerged as Trump's top negotiator, had overstayed his welcome. As Israel's attacks unfolded, some prominent Democrats expressed frustration that Trump had scrapped during his first term a deal between the US, Iran and European allies forged during the Obama administration. Trump and Republicans had condemned that deal, saying it would not have kept a nuclear bomb out of Tehran's hands. Democrats fault Trump for not yet coming up with a credible alternative. 'This is a disaster of Trump and Netanyahu's own making, and now the region risks spiralling toward a new, deadly conflict,' Democratic senator Chris Murphy said in a post on X. Whether these strikes will trigger a regional conflict remains unclear. Even so, analysts said, Tehran could see US assets in the region as legitimate targets. For example, Tehran-aligned Houthi rebels in Yemen could resume their bombing campaign against ships transiting the Red Sea. Also unclear is Israel's ability to permanently impede Iran's nuclear program. Loading Analysts doubt in particular the ability of Israel to destroy Iran's Fordow enrichment plant, which is buried deep underground. While Israel could probably do extensive damage, experts say a more lasting blow would require US military assistance, which US officials said had not been provided. Another question mark is just how effectively Tehran can respond. Israel has indicated that it has targeted several Iranian leaders in the bombing campaign, which is expected to continue in coming days. All these factors will decide if the blow to Trump's aspirations to be seen as a global peacemaker will be a terminal one, or merely a setback. 'If Israel is to be taken at its word that tonight's strikes were the first round in an all-out Israeli campaign against Iran's nuclear and missile programs, Iran's regime is now knee-deep within a potentially existential, life-or-death moment,' said Charles Lister, head of the Syria Initiative at the Middle East Institute. 'That paints tonight's strikes in a whole new, unprecedented light and makes the risk of a major spiral of escalation far more real than what we've seen play out before.'
Korea Herald
24-04-2025
- Politics
- Korea Herald
UN watchdog asks Iran to clarify tunnels but upbeat on deal
WASHINGTON (AFP) -- The head of the United Nations nuclear watchdog agency called Wednesday on Iran to explain tunnels built around a nuclear site but voiced optimism that United States-Iran talks would land a deal. The Institute for Science and International Security, a Washington think tank, released satellite imagery on Wednesday that it said showed a new, deeply buried tunnel alongside an older one around the Natanz site, as well as a new security perimeter. "I've been raising this issue repeatedly, and I will continue to do so," Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, told reporters on a visit to Washington. Grossi, who visited Tehran last week, said that all countries need to inform the IAEA of intentions for facilities around nuclear sites but that Iran has a stance "unique in the world" that it does not need to inform the agency ahead of time. "We're asking them, what is this for? They are telling us, it's none of your business," Grossi said. Grossi said it "cannot be excluded" that the tunnels would store undeclared material but said he did not want to speculate on intentions. But Grossi also said that Iranian and IAEA experts would meet to follow up on his visit, including on reinstalling cameras on nuclear sites. "It was agreed that I am sending a technical team to continue our discussions on this very specific kind of things," he said. "They are going to be meeting in the next few days in Tehran. Iran and the US have held two rounds of talks since President Donald Trump called for a diplomatic solution to avoid conflict. A new round of technical talks is expected this weekend. "I think there's a general expectation that this goes well and that the agreement is verified by the IAEA," Grossi said. He said that was "more or less the sense of what I'm getting when I'm talking to leaders," mentioning specifically Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi as hopeful for a US-Iran deal. Trump in 2018 ripped up an earlier nuclear agreement negotiated under Barack Obama and reimposed sweeping sanctions. But Trump has voiced hope in his second term for a new accord that would resolve the issue diplomatically, and has discouraged Israel from a military strike on Iran. Asked about a military option, Grossi said, "I should simply remind that attacks on nuclear facilities is something that could have potentially very, very serious consequences." The Obama deal, known as the JCPOA, allowed Iran to maintain uranium enrichment at 3.67 percent -- far below the level needed for nuclear weapons -- for civilian nuclear usage. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio stood firm in an interview released Wednesday that there should be no enrichment. "If Iran wants a civil nuclear program, they can have one just like many other countries in the world have one, and that is they import enriched material," he told the Honestly podcast. Rubio said the Trump team would not repeat the Obama deal which "gave Iran immediate and full sanctions relief in exchange for enrichment capabilities that at any point could be weaponized in the future." Obama administration officials counter that the JCPOA worked in constraining Iran's program until Trump walked away and that it is unrealistic to expect Iran to surrender its whole program. The Trump administration has kept up sanctions despite the diplomacy. On Tuesday, the Treasury Department imposed sanctions on an Iranian shipping network and its purported owner. Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei responded that the move was in "clear contradiction with the United States' demand for dialogue and negotiation and indicates America's lack of goodwill and seriousness in this regard."
Iraqi News
22-04-2025
- Business
- Iraqi News
Kuwaiti emir invited to Arab Summit in Iraq
Baghdad ( – The Iraqi Minister of Foreign Affairs, Fuad Hussein, invited Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah on Tuesday to participate in the Arab Summit, which will take place in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, next month. During his meeting with Kuwaiti Crown Prince Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah in Kuwait, Hussein delivered an official invitation from Iraqi President Abdul Latif Jamal Rashid to Sheikh Meshal to participate in the Arab Summit scheduled for May 17 in Baghdad, according to a statement released by the Iraqi Foreign Ministry. Al-Sabah emphasized the need for concerted efforts to enhance coordinated Arab action, pointing to the crucial role Iraq played as a founding member of the Arab League. Hussein clarified that Iraq anticipates the Kuwaiti leaders' participation in the next summit, pointing out that it coincides with an important phase as the Arab world faces significant challenges. The meeting further addressed measures to improve the two countries' bilateral cooperation in the areas of politics, economy, and culture. The two parties discussed the most significant regional and international developments, emphasizing the value of coordinated efforts to address present issues in a way that benefits the people in both countries and advances regional security and stability. Hussein said that Iraq is keeping a close eye on the United States-Iran discussions and hopes they will be successful, adding that Iraq is eager to assist the process in any way it can. In May 2024, Rashid said that Iraq will host the next Arab summit after Syria declined to host the event. Rashid's statement took place during his speech at the 33rd summit of the Arab League held in the Bahraini capital, Manama, according to the Iraqi Presidency.
