President Trump said Tuesday that Iran told the U.S. that it is collapsing and wants the Strait of Hormuz opened.
“Iran has just informed us that they are in a ‘State of Collapse,’” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “They want us to ‘Open the Hormuz Strait,’ as soon as possible, as they try to figure out their leadership situation (Which I believe they will be able to do!).”
The president did not say who told him or if he will comply.
The post comes a day after a proposal from Iran was viewed by U.S. officials, including Trump. The reported proposal would end the war and reopen the strait but postpone any nuclear discussions.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio pooh-poohed the proposal Monday, saying Iran’s nuclear program “is the reason why we’re in this in the first place.”
“There’s no doubt in my mind that at some point in the future, if this radical clerical regime remain in charge in Iran, they will decide they want a nuclear weapon,” Rubio told Fox News. “That fundamental issue still has to be confronted. That still remains the core issue here.”
Trump over the weekend stopped the U.S. delegation from traveling to Pakistan for new negotiations. Special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner were expected to fly to Islamabad without Vice President Vance.
The president told reporters on Saturday that Iran “gave us a paper that should have been better,” and that 10 minutes after he canceled Witkoff and Kushner’s trip, “we got a new paper that was much better,” according to Bloomberg.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt also confirmed that the president had seen the proposal while at the press briefing Monday.
“I don’t want to get ahead of the president or his national security team,” she said. “What I will reiterate is that the president’s red lines with respect to Iran have been made very, very clear not just to the American public, but also to them as well.”
The Hill
