US President Donald Trump is heading to the White House Situation Room to make a final decision on Iran, according to a Friday Truth Social post by the president.
“I will be meeting now, in the Situation Room, to make a final determination,” Trump announced.
Trump added that he will lift the US naval blockade on the Strait of Hormuz, adding that the strait “must be immediately open, no tolls, for unrestricted shipping traffic, in both directions.”
“Ships caught in the Strait due to our amazing and unprecedented Naval Blockade, which will now be lifted, may start the process of ‘heading home!'” said Trump.
He stated that all naval mines remaining in the strait must be “terminated” by Iran, noting that US Navy minesweepers have already removed “numerous such mines.”
President Trump also addressed the issue of Iran’s “buried” enriched uranium, which he referred to as “nuclear dust,” saying it would be “unearthed by the United States” and “destroyed” in coordination with Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Trump stressed that no money will be exchanged with the Islamic Republic until further notice, noting that items “of far less importance” have already been agreed upon.
Iran rejects Trump’s claims
Iran views Trump’s comments as “a mixture of truth and falsehood,” Iran’s semi-official Fars News Agency reported on Friday, citing informed sources.
The Islamic regime further described Trump’s comments as an “attempt to portray a fabricated victory,” according to Fars.
According to the report, Iran claims there is no clause in the memorandum of understanding (MoU) requiring it to open the Strait of Hormuz without charging tolls, despite Trump’s claim to the contrary.
The report added that Iranian responsibilities under the proposed agreement could include ship monitoring and inspection, service provision, and security measures.
The news agency further reported that, according to sources, no clause existed in the MoU regarding the destruction of Iran’s enriched uranium, calling the claim “baseless.”
An Iranian source told Reuters later on Friday that the MoU contains no clauses related to any nuclear issues, further disputing Trump’s claims.
In addition, Iran claimed that the MoU requires an immediate $12 billion payment from frozen Iranian assets, according to the Fars report.
Also on Friday, a senior Iranian source told Reuters that the US and Iran had reached a non-finalized political understanding.
This is a developing story.
