A diplomatic summit originally scheduled for Friday in Istanbul, Turkey, is where a White House envoy is expected to meet with Iranian officials at the same time U.S. military forces are stacking up in the Middle East.
The topics the U.S. plans to discuss include Iran’s nuclear program, its funding for terror groups such as Hezbollah, and the regime’s murderous crackdown on unarmed protesters. However, Iran’s foreign minister has said Iran won’t accept any “dictation” from the U.S. over the issues to discuss.
Not only are the discussion topics a point of disagreement, Iranian officials announced Wednesday they want to move the talks to Oman, Jordan, and exclude other Arab and Muslim nation’s from attending the talks, news website Axios reported.
The new venue has been accepted by the Trump administration, the Axios story said.
Meanwhile, an Iranian drone was shot down by a U.S. military jet after it approached aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln.
A U.S.-flagged commercial tanker was also harassed by Iranian gunboats at almost the same time.
In related comments on the Washington Watch program, U.S. Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-ND) flatly predicted the Trump administration will walk away from any talks without any progress. The lawmaker made that prediction based on decades of Iran's history going back to talks with well-meaning diplomats in the Obama administration.
“I don't think it'll bring about anything different than all the other meetings, over the course of the decades,” Cramer said, “because you're dealing with a regime that can't be trusted.”
In recent weeks, Trump himself witnessed the Iranian regime pull a similar backstabbing stunt. After Iran sent assurances to the White House it was postponing the execution of 800 protesters, which Trump bragged about to White House reporters, Iran’s top prosecutor later stated no such assurances had ever been made.
“We were told that the killing in Iran is stopping, and there’s no plan for executions,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. “The killing has stopped. The executions have stopped.”
“This claim is completely false,” Mohammed Movadehi told Iran’s state media. “No such number exists, nor has the judiciary made any such decision.”
According to news reports, Trump was later informed by Israeli intelligence that Iran has overseen the bloodiest massacre of its own citizens in history, including carrying out public executions and murdering wounded protesters in hospital beds.
Washington Watch host Tony Perkins, echoing the view of many, said Iran is trying to stretch out any talks and negotiations to buy time. The regime is likely hoping it can outlast the Trump administration and survive long enough for a future U.S. president.
“I think that’s exactly right,” Cramer replied.
In the current situation with Trump, however, the Senator said Iran’s ayatollahs should have learned by now they’re not dealing with Obama and Biden after Operation Midnight Hammer obliterated Iran’s nuclear program.
“I certainly hope that Donald Trump won't disappoint the Iranian people who are literally willing to die, and are dying, for their own freedom today,” Cramer said.
