'Some Good Signs,' But Big 'Gaps' As Fitful US-Iran Negotiations Struggle On

The state of US-Iran negotiations was in flux early on May 22, with the sides still at odds over future control of the Strait of Hormuz and Iran’s right to enrich uranium -- among other issues -- and with the Pakistani mediator heading to Tehran in the latest peace push.

US President Donald Trump insisted that Washington will eventually take control of Iran's stockpile of highly enriched uranium, which can be used to develop a nuclear weapon, despite Tehran’s insistence that it would not allow the US to seize it.

"We will get it. We don't need it. We don't want it,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “We'll probably destroy it after we get it, but we're not going to let them have it."

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Defying The US, Iran Is Cementing Its Control Over The Strait Of Hormuz

Meanwhile, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters that a diplomatic agreement would be “unfeasible” if Tehran continued pursuing the implementation of a tolling system in the Strait of Hormuz, the international waterway through which some 20 percent of the global oil and gas supplies transited before the war.

"No one in the world is in favor of the tolling system. It can't happen. It would be unacceptable," Rubio said. "It's a threat to the world if they try to do that, and it's completely illegal."

Trump also rejected any type of toll on Hormuz traffic.

"We want it open. We want it free. We don't want tolls," Trump said. "It's an international waterway."

Despite the harsh rhetoric, both Trump and Rubio insisted that a diplomatic agreement was still possible.

"There's some good signs," Rubio said. "I don't want to be overly optimistic...So, let's see what happens over the next few days."

"I believe the Pakistanis will be traveling to Tehran today. So, hopefully, that'll advance this further," Rubio told reporters.

US officials have often asserted that a negotiated peace deal was close, only to have discussions fall through without evident progress.

'Reduced The Gaps'

Iran said the latest US proposal to end the war "reduced the gaps to some extent" as powerful Pakistani army chief Asif Munir traveled to Tehran in an effort to reduce those gaps, according to Iranian state media.

Iran's ISNA news agency said an exchanges of messages between Iran and the US was "ongoing," with the goal of reaching a framework for agreement.

Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi is already in Tehran holding meetings with Iranian officials.

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As Trump Speaks Of Renewed Iran Strikes, Strategic Dilemma Remains

Pakistan has hosted the only formal round of Iran-US talks since US and Israel launched air strikes on February 28 and has since served as a key communication channel between the two sides.

On May 21, Reuters quoted a senior Iranian official as saying that Iran's uranium enrichment and its control over the Strait of Hormuz ⁠remain among the sticking points.

Iran has also reportedly insisted on reparations for damages caused by the US-Israeli air strikes, a withdrawal of all US troops from countries bordering Iran, an end to a US blockade of Iranian ports, and the ceasing of all fighting, including Israeli attacks on Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon -- conditions Washington has rejected in the past.

Hezbollah, a militant group and political party that controls much of southern Lebanon, is considered a terrorist organization by the US, while the European Union has blacklisted its armed wing but not its political branch.

Renewed Strikes?

The US president said he is ready to resume strikes on Iran -if he does not get the "right answers" from Iran's leadership.

SEE ALSO:
Defying The US, Iran Is Cementing Its Control Over The Strait Of Hormuz

As part of their stated war aims since the launching of attacks, Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have pointed to the dismantling of Iran's nuclear program, ending Tehran's support for regional extremists, and destroying its missile capabilities.

Trump has appeared to pare back demands to focus on preventing Iran from developing a nuclear weapon. Tehran insists its nuclear program is for civilian purposes only.

 
'Some Good Signs,' But Big 'Gaps' As Fitful US-Iran Negotiations Struggle On

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