What to know about the Iran war today:The Trump administration was preparing for a fresh round of military strikes against Iran, according to sources with direct knowledge of the planning, even as diplomacy continued on a potential peace deal. Although, no final decision on strikes had been reached as of Friday afternoon, the sources said.Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that indirect negotiations over a potential deal to end the war with Iran had seen “a little bit of movement, and that’s good.” But he tempered expectations for a peace agreement, however, alluding to unresolved differences over Iran’s nuclear enrichment and calling Iranian efforts to “create a tolling system” in the Strait of Hormuz “not acceptable.” He said the U.S. and its partners must “have a Plan B” if Iran refuses to reopen the strait.Pakistan’s Army Chief Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, a key mediator between Iran and the U.S., traveled to Tehran to meet with Iranian officials as his nation continues efforts to broker a peace deal. Pakistan’s army chief meets with Iranian officials in Tehran
Pakistan’s army chief, a key negotiator in the U.S.-Iran peace talks, met with Iranian officials in Tehran Friday, according to Iran’s semi-official Tasnim News Agency.
Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir met with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and other Iranian officials “on the latest diplomatic efforts and initiatives to prevent escalation of tensions and end the war,” Tasnim said.Advertisementhttps://20f473895f126cb9b00e37673bcf809c.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-45/html/container.html
Reuters reported Friday that a Qatari delegation had also traveled to Tehran to engage in talks with the Iranian regime. In its own statement, Iran’s state-run ISNA news agency said the Qatari delegation had “joined the mediation efforts.”
Along with Pakistan, Qatar — a critical U.S. ally that hosts the largest American military base in the Middle East — has also served as an intermediary in peace negotiations.
U.N. conference to review nuclear proliferation treaty ends without deal
A four-week United Nations conference reviewing the treaty to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons ended Friday without agreement as the U.S. and Iran sparred over Iran’s nuclear program.
Vietnam’s U.N. Ambassador Do Hung Viet, who chaired the conference, announced that there was no consensus among the 191 parties to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty on even a watered-down final document.
He told a news conference later that “no one blocked consensus.” But he said “a very important reason” for the failure to reach an outcome was a provision in the final draft that said Iran “can never seek, develop or acquire any nuclear weapons.”
It was the third failure in a row at a conference reviewing the NPT, considered the cornerstone of global nonproliferation and disarmament. At the last treaty review in August 2022, Russia blocked agreement on a final document over its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine and references to Moscow’s occupation of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Europe’s largest.
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed regret at the failure when the “elevated risk posed by nuclear weapons demands urgent action,” spokesman Stephane Dujarric said. He appealed to all countries “to make full use of all available avenues of dialogue, diplomacy, and negotiation to reduce tensions, lower nuclear risks, and ultimately eliminate the nuclear threat.”
The U.S. and Iran have clashed since the opening of the review conference on April 27. The U.S. has accused Iran of showing “contempt” for its commitments under the treaty, while Iran has said U.S. and Israeli attacks on its nuclear facilities violated international law.
Iran is a party to the NPT, which requires countries to open all nuclear sites to inspection by the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency. But Iran has not given inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency access to nuclear sites that were bombed by the U.S. last June.
U.S. prepares for new military strikes against Iran
The Trump administration was preparing Friday for a fresh round of military strikes against Iran, according to sources with direct knowledge of the planning, even as diplomacy continued.
No final decision on strikes had been reached as of Friday afternoon.
“Circumstances pertaining to Government” are keeping President Trump from attending his son Donald Trump Jr.’s wedding this weekend, he said in a social media post. The president had planned to spend Memorial Day weekend at his golf property in New Jersey but will now return to the White House.
Some members of the U.S. military and intelligence community canceled their plans for the Memorial Day weekend in anticipation of possible strikes, several sources said.
Defense and intelligence officials began updating recall rosters for U.S. installations overseas as tranches of troops stationed in the Middle East rotate out of theater, part of an effort to reduce the American military footprint in the region amid concern about possible Iranian retaliation.
Credit: Yahoo News