#naval-blockade — Trump Fail

The Full Text of Trump's 14-Point Iran Deal: Lift the Blockade, Waive Oil Sanctions, Unfreeze Assets, Pay $300 Billion — and Iran Keeps Its Missiles, Its Proxies, and Its Nuclear Program

A senior U.S. official read the 14-point "Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding" to reporters on a call Wednesday. The full text reveals: the U.S. will immediately lift its naval blockade, waive all Iranian oil sanctions, unfreeze all restricted Iranian assets, commit to ending all sanctions (UN, IAEA, and unilateral), and fund a $300 billion reconstruction plan — in exchange for Iran reiterating it "will never produce nuclear weapons" (a promise it already made under the JCPOA) and reopening the Strait of Hormuz (which was open before the war). Iran's missile program is not mentioned. Its proxy networks are not mentioned. Its enriched uranium stockpile is deferred to a "final agreement." Sen. Murphy: "Make no mistake: these are Iran's terms. They made one single concession — opening the Strait. And it's not even a concession because the Strait was open before the war." The Institute for the Study of War: Iran "emerged from the conflict in a stronger strategic position." Trump withdrew from Obama's JCPOA calling it the "worst deal ever." He then started a war, killed over 1,700 Iranian civilians, and signed a deal that gives Iran more than the JCPOA did — without addressing the missiles he said justified leaving the JCPOA in the first place.

Iran Halts All Negotiations With the U.S. and Vows to "Completely Block" the Strait of Hormuz

Iran suspended all mediated exchanges with the U.S. and announced it will pursue a complete blockade of the Strait of Hormuz — plus activate the Bab al-Mandeb chokepoint — after accusing the U.S. of ceasefire violations through Israel's continued operations in Lebanon against Hezbollah. Oil surged 7.7% on the news. Trump's response: "I don't care" if negotiations are over, and the talks had "started to get very boring." The deal that was on the table — unrestricted Hormuz shipping, mine removal, blockade lifting, sanctions waivers — now appears dead. Three months into a war that had no defensible cause, the strait remains closed, oil is up 30%, and the president says he's bored.