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In a Truth Social post on Monday morning, President Donald Trump appeared to back away from his previous threats against Iran regarding the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, settling fears on Wall Street about a potential expansion of the war.
Trump wrote that his previous threats to retaliate against Iran by targeting the country’s energy sites — unless it allowed the strait to fully reopen — were no longer necessary due to progress in negotiations between Iran and the U.S.
In his all-caps message, Trump said that he was “PLEASED TO REPORT THAT THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, AND THE COUNTRY OF IRAN, HAVE HAD, OVER THE LAST TWO DAYS, VERY GOOD AND PRODUCTIVE CONVERSATIONS REGARDING A COMPLETE AND TOTAL RESOLUTION OF OUR HOSTILITIES IN THE MIDDLE EAST.”
Trump also said that, based on these supposed talks, he would postpone “ANY AND ALL MILITARY STRIKES AGAINST IRANIAN POWER PLANTS AND ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE FOR A FIVE DAY PERIOD, SUBJECT TO THE SUCCESS OF THE ONGOING MEETINGS AND DISCUSSIONS.”
Trump had previously written on Saturday that he was giving Iran two days’ notice before the U.S. and Israel would launch attacks on Iran.
“If Iran doesn’t FULLY OPEN, WITHOUT THREAT, the Strait of Hormuz, within 48 HOURS from this exact point in time, the United States of America will hit and obliterate their various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST!” Trump said on Saturday.
In return, Iran vowed to retaliate by attacking the energy sites of other Gulf-area countries if the U.S. began attacks after the Monday deadline.
After that back-and-forth, oil futures showed a high likelihood of rising prices over the weekend, and stock futures reacted negatively.
Following Trump’s post on Monday, however, stocks have reacted positively.
Despite those upswings, stock analysts have said investors should be cautious, as Trump’s claims haven’t been verified and the situation could shift at any time.
“It’s incredibly difficult to trade these markets when Trump is swinging between massive escalation and declaring peace/victory… but the market is happy for now that we do not enter a new phase of danger,” market analyst Neil Wilson said.
Some reports are suggesting that Iran’s leadership denies that there has been progress in negotiating an end to the war or a reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.
“No negotiations have been held with the US, and fake news is used to manipulate the financial and oil markets and escape the quagmire in which the US and Israel are trapped,” Iran parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on X.
Iran’s Fars news agency said the two countries haven’t had “direct or indirect” contact, although some sources have told Axios that there have been indirect discussions.
Trump himself has provided incongruent statements throughout the weekend about the U.S.’s war on Iran. For example, a day before claiming that negotiations were progressing, Trump implied on Truth Social that the “death of Iran” had already occurred.
On Friday, Trump said the U.S. was “getting very close to meeting our objectives as we consider winding down our great Military efforts” against Iran. Yet, one day prior, his administration said it was asking for an additional $200 billion in funding for the conflict, indicating that it would last longer than Trump had insinuated. The movement of thousands of additional U.S. troops to the region also suggests that the White House is planning for a longer conflict.
Trump spoke to reporters after publishing his post on Monday, saying the Strait of Hormuz would be “jointly controlled,” but failing to offer additional details.
Asked to elaborate on who specifically would control the strait, Trump offered only a vague answer.
“Maybe me. Me and the ayatollah, whoever the next ayatollah is,” Trump suggested. “There will also be a very serious form of regime change.”
“Look at Venezuela,” he added.
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