Trump shows his frustration as Iran keeps him waiting
Analysis by Nic Robertson
All eyes are on Tehran as everyone awaits the Iranian leadership’s next move.
Pakistani mediators expect a revised peace proposal from Iran after US President Donald Trump rejected a previous version. Sources familiar with the efforts say an answer could come as soon as today, or slide to Friday. The same sources say these delays hint at difficulties reaching the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei.
Patience is playing out in different ways.
Pakistan’s Prime Minister, Shehbaz Sharif, told his cabinet that Iran’s foreign minister, who led talks in Islamabad at the weekend, “assured me that he would give me an answer.”
No timeline was given but the public nudge to the Iranians is notable, coming soon after the White House signaled its patience is wearing thin.
Trump’s message that Iran “better get smart soon” was in contrast to his more patient messaging yesterday, when he said he believed Iran will be able to “figure out their leadership situation.”
He seemed to echo concerns about Khamenei — still yet to be seen in public — raised by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who questioned whether top officials can reach the supreme leader, suggesting access to him was “questionable.”
The more Iran delays, the more the questions will follow. Is the slow decision-making process a symptom of an Ayatollah holed up in secret at the end of a long logistical chain? Or, more problematically, is it tactical ploy by hardliners who are intentionally isolating him so they can play for time to pressure Trump”
No one seems to have an answer to that, and it suits Iran to keep everyone guessing.
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