Trump: Iran is facing an economic crisis
US President Donald Trump has said he favors increasing economic pressure on Tehran rather than launching a new military operation against Iran, Axios reported on August 9, citing a brief phone conversation with Trump.
Trump: Iran on the verge of economic crisis
According to US President Donald Trump, the US-imposed naval blockade has deepened the crisis in Iran's economy. At the same time, Trump said that he was not yet ready to order a new military operation against Tehran.
On August 8, Iran announced a number of conditions for the restoration of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. However, Trump noted that Washington is not paying much attention to these demands.
The US president said that negotiations between Washington and Tehran are not yet at an active stage. He noted that inflation in Iran is very high and the country is facing financial difficulties.
Trump claimed that the US naval blockade has exacerbated the problems in Iran's economy. According to him, Tehran is facing financial difficulties even in paying its military personnel.
On August 8, Tehran demanded that Washington lift sanctions and pay compensation for the violation of a memorandum of understanding signed in June of this year by the US military.
According to the Tasnim Agency, the head of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, Mohammad Baqir Zolqadr, demanded guarantees from Washington that the country would not face any further US threats.
Tehran's other conditions include the withdrawal of US troops from the region, the lifting of the naval blockade of Iranian ports, the lifting of sanctions, the opening of frozen assets, and compensation for strikes on Iran.
In addition, Iran's Supreme National Security Council demanded a halt to actions against Iran's allies in Lebanon, Palestine, Yemen, and Iraq.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said that the opening of the Strait of Hormuz was not dependent on negotiations between Iran and Oman. On August 9, the IIC announced that the strait would remain closed “until the enemy fulfills all conditions.”
According to the source, the framework agreement signed by the US and Iran on June 17 provided for the cessation of hostilities and the lifting of the blockade on the Strait of Hormuz.
However, on June 25, an Iranian drone suicide bomber was reported to have attacked a civilian tanker passing through the Strait of Hormuz. The US then retaliated by striking several targets in Iranian territory.
On July 8, at the NATO summit in Ankara, Donald Trump announced that the memorandum of understanding signed with Iran was no longer valid. The US then reinstated oil sanctions against Iran.
In the current situation, the Trump administration is said to prefer to exert influence through sanctions and economic pressure rather than launching new military strikes on Tehran.