Iran

They’re Not Wrong

Written by SK Ashby

After threatening Iran with fire and fury, or whatever, Trump said he would meet with Iranian officials without preconditions to negotiate a new nuclear deal, but Iranian officials aren't impressed by Trump's offer.

Suffice to say, it seems unlikely that Trump's overtures will lead to another "summit."

“With current America and these policies, there will definitely not be the possibility of dialogue and engagement, and the United States has shown that it is totally unreliable,” [Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qassemi] said at the news conference, which was carried by Iran’s state news media.

More from the Wall Street Journal:

Ali Motahari, the deputy speaker of Iran’s parliament, said that now that the U.S. has withdrawn Iranian engagement could be interpreted as a sign of weakness.

“Today, negotiations with the U.S. bring humiliation,” he said Tuesday according to the official Islamic Republic News Agency. “For now, it’s not appropriate to talk with the U.S.” [...]

“As long as the Americans bring up negotiations with a forceful attitude, there will be no negotiations,” Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh, chairman of Iran’s national security and foreign policy commission, said Tuesday, according to the semiofficial Iranian Students’ News Agency. [...]

“Why would the Iranians negotiate with an administration that is internally inconsistent?” said Ali Vaez, the director of the Iran Project at the International Crisis Group. “Should they believe Pompeo’s 12 preconditions or the president’s unconditional proposition? At this stage, no Iranian leader can afford to negotiate with a gun to their head.”

That's a very good question. Should you believe what Trump says or what his underlings say?

The answer is you shouldn't believe any of them, or at least that's what the Chinese may tell you following their incoherent trade talks with the Trump regime in which Trump's cabinet officials openly argued with each other while Trump tweeted about it.

The Iranian position is understandable, but they may want to consider the possibility that sitting down for a meeting with Trump may lead to Trump declaring victory even if they don't give him anything. I'm just saying, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has done quite well for himself by simply shaking hands with the only man in the world who is a bigger fraud.