Trump says the US and Iran resume talks despite weekend bombings

WashingtonWhen the United States began the war against Iran with the support of Israel, there was still snow to melt in the streets of Washington. Now, the latest episode of crossfire between Tehran and Washington has occurred in the midst of the summer heat, while the rhetoric about the conflict remains stuck in the same cycle. U.S. President Donald Trump stated on Monday that the American and Iranian delegations will meet again tomorrow, Tuesday, in Doha (Qatar), despite the weekend bombings. Previously, Kazem Gharibabadi, the head of the Persian negotiating team, had told reporters that no talks were scheduled. For now, Tehran has not confirmed Trump's announcement.

Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt assured Fox News that Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and the president's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, would fly to Doha to participate in the talks. The last round, which took place in Switzerland, was led by Vice President J.D. Vance. Although the Witkoff-Kushner tandem has become a constant in Trumpian diplomacy, it is Vance who will have to pay the price, whatever the outcome of the negotiations.

After the new warlike outburst, both sides have agreed to suspend the attacks of recent days to return to the negotiating table. Although the White House has not yet officially confirmed the agreement, a senior U.S. official assured Axios that both sides "will refrain for now" from carrying out new military actions.

The resumption of hostilities and the announcement of a new face-to-face meeting come after the White House capitulated to Tehran on June 17 with a preliminary memorandum aimed at reopening the Strait of Hormuz. The reactivation of the maritime passage, through which 20% of global oil passes, was intended to provide relief to the markets and ease the fragile ceasefire while the thorniest issue was discussed: the situation in Lebanon and the nuclear program.

The authority of the document signed by Trump in Versailles only had a week's grace until last Friday when the Republican accused the ayatollahs of breaking the ceasefire after an Iranian drone attacked a tanker in the strait. Although the US military confirmed that the ship had been able to continue sailing, a few hours later the central command (Centcom) announced that it had opened fire on Iranian positions and missile and drone depots. The first wave occurred just after Trump told reporters "you will find out" what consequences the Iranians would pay for not complying with the military pause.

The initial euphoria experienced in the Strait of Hormuz with the signing of the memorandum has quickly given way to a new drop in maritime traffic. During the weekend, the passage of commercial ships contracted significantly. According to the maritime tracking company Kpler, only 22 ships crossed the strait on Sunday, in contrast to the 48 that had done so on Friday. Be that as it may, the figures remain very, very far from the usual traffic before the war.

The Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Abbas Araghchi, assured on Sunday that Iran is solely responsible for the management of the strait and warned that using an alternative route near Oman would delay the full reopening of the maritime passage.

This Monday, the Iranians again asserted their control over the strait by rejecting the offer of the French President, Emmanuel Macron, to help with the task of demining the waters of the maritime passage. After meeting with the Sultan of Oman – the other major mediator country along with Pakistan – Macron had said that France would work with the Omanis and other countries to remove the mines at the bottom of Hormuz. Shortly after, in a social media post, Gharibabadi said that the task of clearing the mines would be exclusively carried out by Iran and warned Paris not to further complicate the situation with "provocations".