Ultimatums and a visit to Graceland as Trump eyes Iran dealprinted at 04:55 GMT
Anthony Zurcher
North America correspondent
Image supply, ReutersTrump visited the house of Elvis Presley on Monday and signed a duplicate guitar
Donald Trump’s actions over the previous few days have been a mixture of diplomacy and diversions – with the occasional swing in the direction of the surreal.
On Friday, he mentioned the US war in opposition to Iran was “winding down”.
By Saturday evening, he had given Iran a 48-hour deadline to reopen the Strait of Hormuz or face withering new airstrikes on its power manufacturing infrastructure.
On Sunday, he golfed and by Monday morning, he mentioned the Iranians have been participating in “constructive” talks with the US. Later that day, he visited Graceland, music legend Elvis Presley’s historic dwelling.
US contact with an unnamed Iranian chief – not confirmed by Iran – was sufficient to benefit a five-day keep of the threatened assaults, he mentioned.
But the prospect of talks was sufficient to ship the US inventory market surging and international oil costs dropping.
Now, Trump is again in Washington, the place a brand new five-day countdown to US assaults on Iranian energy infrastructure will start.
After suits, begins and a pilgrimage to the house of a deceased rock legend, Trump might have offered the primary indication of an actual breakthrough.
Or it might be simply the most recent occasion of this president realising that the ultimatum he delivered put him in a decent spot, forcing a transfer to purchase himself extra time.
