US President Donald Trump has stated that negotiations with Iran may resume “at some point”, but that he is satisfied with the current situation.
Responding to a journalist’s question at the White House on 19 August about the possibility of resuming negotiations with Iran, Trump said: “Right now, in my view, the situation is very good,” before adding that negotiations might resume “perhaps at some point”.
Trump also reiterated that Iran must not acquire nuclear weapons.
“Iran cannot have nuclear weapons,” he said, adding that Iran “cannot have nuclear weapons, and will not have them”.
As for the Strait of Hormuz, Trump said that the United States “owns and has full control” over this waterway, adding that the rest of Iran’s activities are merely a “nuisance” when Iran occasionally shoots down a drone.
The Reuters news agency, citing Kpler, a company specialising in trade flow analysis, reported that on 18 August, six vessels carrying commodities crossed the strait, which is fewer than the nine vessels the previous day and below the 10-day average of 11 vessels per day.
Trump’s remarks came two days after the end of the 60-day negotiation period established under the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the US and Iran, signed in June. The MOU sought to lay the groundwork for ending the conflict, preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons and restoring freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.
The 60-day deadline expired without a final agreement being reached, and the negotiations remain at a standstill. The United States claims that Iran breached the June agreement by carrying out attacks on neutral merchant vessels in the Strait in July, which served as a pretext for the US to resume military action.