Trump Says Further US Airstrikes on Iran Are Unlikely if Talks Progress
President Donald Trump said on November 8 that further US airstrikes on Iran were unlikely if talks made progress, but attacks could resume if negotiations failed. Disagreements over the nuclear program, sanctions and maritime security persist as tensions in the Strait of Hormuz continue.
US President Donald Trump said on November 8 that the likelihood of further US airstrikes on Iran was “very low” if negotiations with Iran made progress. In a telephone interview with CNN, he said further military action would be unnecessary if the two sides reached a stringent agreement. The agreement would need to address Iran’s nuclear program and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. He added that attacks could resume if talks failed.
The ruins of a house on Iran’s Qeshm Island after a US military airstrike on November 6.（VietVance）
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the door to diplomacy remained open, but there were no signs of a breakthrough soon. Qatar continued to facilitate the exchange of proposals between Washington and Tehran, while Saudi Arabia and Qatar also discussed the regional situation and measures to ease tensions. The parties remained divided over key conditions concerning sanctions, the nuclear program and maritime security.
Iranian media reported explosions in the port city of Bandar Abbas and several locations in Hormozgan Province on November 8. Their cause remained unclear. Iranian state television said missile attacks on Iranian territory had not been confirmed and raised the possibility that the explosions were linked to Iranian military activity. There is currently no basis for concluding that the US launched another round of airstrikes.
Shipping tensions in the Strait of Hormuz also continued. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said two oil tankers caught fire after striking mines in the strait. US Central Command said US forces had disabled a merchant vessel accused of trying to breach the blockade of Iranian ports. Shipping through the strait remained disrupted, affecting a route important to global energy trade.
In Yemen, health authorities controlled by the Houthis said on November 7 that airstrikes on a village near the capital, Sanaa, killed at least 33 people and injured 39. The Houthis accused Saudi Arabia of carrying out the attack; Saudi Arabia said it was reviewing the information.
Source: VietVance
