US President Donald Trump stated that Washington has no intention of extending the framework agreement with Tehran, expressing pessimism regarding the prospects of reaching a satisfactory agreement.
The Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, signed on 17 June, included a 60-day period for negotiations aimed at resolving key issues concerning the opening of the Strait of Hormuz and Iran’s nuclear ambitions.
However, the deadline passed without any signs of progress in the negotiations.
“They are not going to make the kind of deal that I think is necessary,” Trump told reporters on 17 August, referring to Iranian officials.
In a telephone interview with Fox News earlier that day, he stated that Iran should simply “surrender”.
“They must raise the white flag of surrender,” Trump said.
He also issued a stark warning to US ally Oman, which is working with Iran on a plan to restore commercial shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz – a vital waterway running between the two countries that has effectively been closed for most of the time since the start of the US-Israeli war with Iran on 28 February.
“If Oman gets in the way, we’ll bomb the hell out of them,” Trump declared.