— / So, let me get this straight:
— / So, let me get this straight:
– Iran and U.S. reach a broad framework deal, both sides initially agree it’ll include the release of half of Iran’s frozen assets (~$12 Billion) and a full ceasefire in Lebanon.
– Within a few days, the U.S. backtracks, and says it agrees with ‘90%’ of the proposal, except for Iran’s key demands (unfreezing the funds & Lebanon), and it also wants to have a commitment on the uranium stockpile.
– Iran says no, that’s not what we agreed on, and so the MoU negotiations reach a stalemate. Ball is now in Trump’s court to accept original terms that were mutually agreed.
– After almost a week of deliberation, Trump finally decides he can’t actually accept what Iran, Pakistan & U.S. representatives (including Witkoff) have agreed to. But that’s not the end.
– Instead, Trump sends back an even TOUGHER proposal, while Iran ALREADY DID NOT AGREE with the latest U.S. amendments (no release of frozen funds & Israeli freedom of action in Lebanon), and somehow expecting that Iran would then backtrack and accept those U.S. amendments out of fear for the even tougher terms.
This can be compared to two people who are negotiating the price of a car. Person A (salesman) wants $5000 for the car, person B (buyer) agrees. After a short while, the salesman then says ‘actually, I want $6000’, and the buyer refuses. Then the salesman goes even further and says ‘you know what? I want $10,000 for it’, hoping that his offer of $6000 would then be taken by the buyer. In short? Delusion.
This is exactly the kind of goalpost shifting that Iran has long taken issue with. The U.S. constantly changes its demands and cannot agree on anything, it’s simply impossible to make a deal with an administration like this.
Source: Telegram "Middle_East_Spectator"