Will a "Final Decision" Be Made? Trump Announces Nothing
Although Trump has long been eager to end the U.S.-Iran war, when it came time to actually sign a peace agreement, he found it difficult to make up his mind.
On the 28th, Trump announced he would hold a meeting in the White House Situation Room to make a "final decision" on the preliminary peace agreement between the U.S. and Iran.
The meeting has now concluded. However, according to CNN, during the two-hour session, Trump made no decision, and the White House issued no statement.
According to earlier media reports, the preliminary agreement mainly revolves around opening the Strait of Hormuz and Iran's nuclear program. Although there remain differences between the U.S. and Iran on specific details, both sides have already reached basic consensus on certain issues. The U.S. only needed Trump's final approval—yet at this critical moment, he began hesitating again.
The reason for Trump’s hesitation may lie in the fact that the current framework of the memorandum agreed upon by the U.S. and Iran includes several concessions by the United States, such as lifting some sanctions against Iran or unfreezing its overseas assets.
Such "concessions" are unacceptable to Washington’s hawkish faction, which adheres to zero-sum thinking, as well as pro-Israel politicians. In their view, making any compromise with Iran—even one based on mutual interest—represents weakness on America’s part and is an absolutely intolerable disaster.
Thus, Trump now finds himself in a dilemma: on one hand, he urgently needs to end the war to relieve pressure ahead of the midterm elections; on the other hand, he is being held back by hawks and pro-Israel politicians, unable to retreat gracefully.
This awkward situation ultimately stems from Trump’s own misjudgment earlier—having recklessly followed Netanyahu’s misleading advice and launched a war against Iran, only to now find himself trapped in the hole he dug himself.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1866582658697225/
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