WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump on Wednesday urged Iran to \u2018get smart soon\u2019 and sign a deal, following days of deadlock in efforts to end the conflict and \u200ba media report that the US would extend its blockade of Iran\u2019s ports.<\/p>\n
In a post on Truth Social, Trump, who has said Iran can call if it wants to talk and has stressed repeatedly Tehran cannot have a nuclear weapon, said the country \u2018couldn\u2019t get its act together.\u2019<\/p>\n
The Wall Street Journal cited US officials as saying the president had instructed aides to prepare for an extended blockade of Iran\u2019s ports in a bid to force Tehran to capitulate.<\/p>\n
Officials said that Trump had opted to continue squeezing Iran\u2019s economy and oil exports with the blockade as his other options \u2014 resuming bombing or walking away from the conflict \u2014 carried more risk, according to the WSJ.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey don\u2019t know how to sign a nonnuclear deal. They\u2019d better get smart soon!\u201d Trump \u200csaid in the \u200cpost on Wednesday, without explaining what such a deal would entail.<\/p>\n
Iran wants some \u200bkind \u200cof \u2060US acknowledgment \u200bof \u2060its right to enrich uranium for what it says are peaceful, civilian purposes.<\/p>\n
It has a stockpile of roughly 440 kilograms (970 pounds) of uranium enriched to 60 percent, material that could be used for several nuclear weapons if further enriched.<\/p>\n
Iranian officials said on Tuesday the country could withstand the blockade as it was using alternative trade routes, and the Islamic Republic did not consider the war over.<\/p>\n
The conflict has killed thousands, thrown energy markets into turmoil and disrupted global trade routes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump on Wednesday urged Iran to \u2018get smart soon\u2019 and sign a deal, following days of deadlock in efforts to end the conflict and \u200ba media report that the US would extend its blockade of Iran\u2019s ports. In a post on Truth Social, Trump, who has said Iran can call if […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":543690,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-543683","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n