There are two crucial days left in the standoff between Iran and the United States of America, with President Donald Trump’s new ultimatum expected to expire Tuesday evening, while Iran has shown no sign of conceding.
In his initial ultimatum issued March 26th, Trump gave Iran until the end of the following Monday to reopen the Strait of Hormuz or else the US will destroy the energy and water networks of the nation.
However, the White House has stated the cut off time has now been moved to Tuesday evening at 8 PM Eastern Standard Time, making it the latest extension from Trump’s original ultimatum.
In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, when asked if he had any concern about the wellbeing of civilians in Iran, Trump replied he did not.
Trump has used inflammatory language, but he has also said that a diplomatic solution is still possible.
Trump told Axios that the US was “in deep negotiations” with Iran and that a deal could be reached before Tuesday.
He also said, “I am blowing up everything over there” if talks don’t work out.
Also Read: Pentagon ousts Army’s top general as 40 nation coalition charts path to reopen Strait of Hormuz
Nevertheless, Iran has rejected the deal outright. Tehran rejected an American offer of a 15 point plan as being “unreasonable” and insisted on assurances of non attack with a definite commitment to end hostilities.
The central command of Iran’s military described Trump’s rhetoric as a “helpless, nervous, unbalanced and stupid action.”
The speaker of Iran’s parliament, meanwhile lambasted the US president for blindly following orders from Netanyahu, which will ultimately spell disaster for America.
As for opening the strait, an Iranian presidential spokesman said that this will only happen when Tehran gets compensated for its losses during the war in terms of transit fees for a new legal regime.
An Iranian adviser further threatened that Tehran would consider extending its interference to the Bab el Mandeb strait off the Arabian peninsula, a key choke point of international commerce.
The standoff has already caused market jitters and pushed up oil prices sharply.
After rising by 3.4% last week based on optimism over a diplomatic resolution, the S&P 500 index is still jittery as the Tuesday deadline nears.
The price of Brent crude, spot delivery stood at more than US$32 higher than the June futures contract.
Last week, the standoff got worse when an F 15E Strike Eagle was shot down over Iran, marking the first confirmed loss of a US warplane in the conflict.
The plane’s weapons systems officer was able to avoid Iranian forces for more than 24 hours in the mountains before Navy SEAL Team 6 rescued him, hurt but alive.
The next few hours will determine the course of the most important US military conflict in the Middle East in decades, whether Tuesday brings a last minute deal or a sharp rise in attacks on Iranian infrastructure.
