Middle East crisis live: Iran reviewing peace proposal as Trump says a deal ‘very possible’
The US and Iran have offered conflicting messages over the likelihood of a deal being reached imminentlyMorning and welcome to the Guardian’s continuing coverage of the crisis in the Middle...
By Taz Ali · The Guardian World
The US and Iran have offered conflicting messages over the likelihood of a deal being reached imminently Morning and welcome to the Guardian’s continuing coverage of the crisis in the Middle East. The US and Iran have offered conflicting messages over the state of negotiations to end the war, with Donald Trump signalling the talks were “very good” and a deal “very possible”. News of a possible deal followed Trump’s abrupt U-turn on a US military operation to guide ships out of the strait of Hormuz, dubbed “Project Freedom”. Trump said the decision to pause the mission on Tuesday – two days after it was launched – was to give peace a chance, but NBC reported that it was suspended after Saudi Arabia refused to allow the US military to use its bases and airspace to carry out the operation. US officials told the American broadcaster that Gulf allies were caught off guard by the sudden announcement of Project Freedom, and that it had angered the leadership in Saudi Arabia. The Iranian president, Masoud Pezeshkian, told his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, that the US’s behaviour had “deviated the path of diplomacy towards threats, pressure and sanctions” and that Tehran could not trust Washington. In a statement carried by the Iranian state-run Press TV, Pezeshkian said Iran had entered into dialogue with the US twice and “on both occasions, military aggression against Iran took place concurrently with the negotiations. Such behaviour is effectively like ‘stabbing from behind’”. Iran has denied any involvement in damage to a South Korean-operated vessel in the strait of Hormuz, which suffered an explosion and fire on Monday. Trump blamed the incident on an Iranian attack, while South Korea’s foreign ministry said the cause of the fire would only be confirmed after the vessel is inspected. The Iran embassy in Seoul issued a statement this morning rejecting the allegations, saying safe passage through the waterway requires strict adherence to Iranian regulations. The…