Originally appeared at ZeroHedge
At a moment the US Navy conducted provocative military exercises in the Arabian Sea on Monday, Iran’s president responded to overtures by Trump that Tehran should “call me” with a firm line of, “No talks, only resistance.”
US military statements highlighted the Arabian Sea drills were specifically in response to heightened unspecified threats from Iran, and were led by the USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group and the US Marine Corps to highlight American “lethality and agility to respond to threat” and to advance US security.
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani, who oversaw the 2015 nuclear deal negotiations (JCPOA) with then president Obama, said he welcomed any US diplomatic overture but wouldn’t be coerced into new negotiations under economic sanctions and threat of military action.
“I favor talks and diplomacy but under current conditions, I do not accept it, as today’s situation is not suitable for talks and our choice is resistance only,” Rouhani said, according to Iran’s IRNA news agency.
“If we walked away from the JCPOA [Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action – the formal name of the nuclear deal] with the US provocative acts, then, in addition to the US, the UN and world would also impose sanctions on us,” he said.
It appears Trump has taken a “North Korea-style” approach to Iran that combines unpredictably aggressive threats and maneuvers – especially by other White House officials – with unexpected moments of reaching out a hand.
That tactic was certainly on display Monday when Trump expressed US willingness to meet any Iranian action against US interests with “great force” – yet followed it by saying it’s up to Iran to initiate conciliatory dialogue: “If they call, we will certainly negotiate, but this is going to be up to them,” he told reporters.
The amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge sails in front of the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier on May 17, 2019, in the Arabian Sea. via US Navy/Military Times
That came a day after on Trump put Tehran on notice in a Sunday tweet saying, “If Iran wants to fight, that will be the official end of Iran” and to “never threaten the United States again”.
But unlike with North Korea, this “maximum pressure” threat tactic doesn’t appear to be working, especially as Iran has many more international allies, and given six major powers had already agreed to the 2015 JCPOA, which the White House last May backed out of.
Meanwhile, Iran has signaled following Trump’s “call me” message given to Tehran’s leaders through press briefings that it’s ready to do the complete opposite, considering its official nuclear agency announced Monday it has “quadrupled its production of low-enriched uranium“.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, via the AP
Both the semi-official Fars and Tasnim news agencies cited Iran’s nuclear agency spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi to say the country would reach the 300-kilogram limit set by the nuclear deal merely “in weeks” — in what appears counter-threat signalling to Washington.
Never ever slam the door in an Americans nose, ever. If you do this, you will stop to exist, you will be sanctioned, and you cant get any more usury loans, your access to Visa will be closed, your life will simply smoulder!!
Fer fu@k sake they’ve been doing that to Iran for forty years. Did it work on Korea? Nope. Did it work on Russia? Nope. Did it work on Cuba? Nope. Is it working on Venezuela? Nope. Is Iran gonna cave? Nope.
This is the place where after maximum pressure and a nuclear armada off Irans shores the Iranians are supposed to break down and take Trump up on his very kind offer to negotiate due to pressure from everyday iranians who are just drooling for Big Macs and Disney.
It ain’t gonna happen. Iran has been preparing for this for 40 years. They’ve been digging in and fortifying. Their war plan isn’t to fight toe to toe with Americans. they are going to hunker down and absorb the bombardment then take pot shots at tankers and oil installations.
The US doesn’t want to fight a ground war in Iran but they’ll have to to clear Iranian missile team from the shores of the Persian gulf. Then the real war begins. Just like Afghanistan only this time you’re fighting a highly advanced civilization with a population of 80 million …. the population of Germany in 1938 was 78 million and they didn’t have 40 years to plan an insurgency.
Trump is bluffing to suck up to the vermin Jews. And their anti American ziocon swamp puppets.
Unlike Syria which is unwilling to take down IAF aircraft outside of Syrian airspace or attack Israel. Iran is unlikely to show similar restraint against US aircraft and assets in the Gulf and regionally. And Iran has a lot more offensive counter punch than Syria. And will be supported by SCO governments.
There is no way to stop Russian resupply without attacking Russia. Which the US isn’t going to do.
Then you have the effect of $200 to $300 a barrel oil on the US economy which can’t meet domestic energy needs from domestic production.
All of the US saber rattling is adolescent grand standing by a President and administration that has no intention of following through on it.
Wrong as far as oil goes. Nowadays US is a net exporter. Shale oil has pushed US production.
I’ve seen no proof of that.
The US is neither oil nor energy independent, unless you believe or are peddling Jew lies. According to Forbes:
“For the week ending 11/30/18, the EIA reported that the U.S. produced 11.7 million barrels per day (BPD) of crude oil. That represents a 2 million BPD increase from the year-ago number. This number is generally accepted even by those who believe the Bloomberg headline was misleading.
Further down in the report, the category of Products Supplied is listed at 20.5 million BPD. This is approximate U.S. crude oil consumption for the week. Thus, as some skeptics of the story suggested, the bottom line is that the U.S. is burning more than 20 million BPD while producing less than 12 million BPD.”
– No, The U.S. Is Not A Net Exporter Of Crude Oil –
https://www.forbes.com/sites/rrapier/2018/12/09/no-the-u-s-is-not-a-net-exporter-of-crude-oil/#700ec5754ac1
The same statistics say that US imports about 10 million bpd and exports mid 2018 were on a level of some 8 million bpd and rising rapidly. For 2019 and 2020 net export is expected. On top of that large scale export of LPG has started.
Source google
Coming from a zionist shill and habitual liar like you. Your nonsensical comment only illustrates your propensity to lie and obfuscate and spam these threads with stupidity. Source google is an obvious dodge. Try a quote and link like I used if you’re interested in correcting your credibility deficit.
Iran is not a highly advanced industrialised civilization. It is only halfway between Afganistan and Turkey, which itself is halfway between Afghanistan and the US.
Like Russia who were under sanction and isolated most of the 20th century they don’t produce consumer goods but they do produce some pretty advanced weapons.
They have a nuclear industry and the ability to enrich uranium.
They have an aviation industry. They build aircraft and helicopters under licence including avionics. They produce jet engines including producing their own super alloys that only a few countries in the world can produce.
They build their own guided missiles.
They are able to hack and commandeer US drones, they took down a top secret RQ-170 stealth drone in 2011 and are now flying their own cloned version.
They have a shipbuilding industry that produces naval vessels, oil tankers, bulk carriers and LNG carriers.
They are self sufficient in energy.
Here’s a list of the military equipment they build https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_military_equipment_manufactured_in_Iran
The USA has not fought a nation that was a industrially self sufficient as Iran since Japan. Consider too that because of Iran’s location Russia and China would be pouring arms and supplies into Iran. Russia will risk nuclear war before they allow the USA access to the Caspian sea and Iran is crucial to China’s BRI<
Very well said. DN is a truth hating Zionist shill who has been spamming these threads with hasbara disinfo and propaganda for years.
what are u smoking u cracked out idiot?
Depends on the American and the nose. Let’s say, Jacob Wool or somethin’. I’ll gladly open the door for his nose to come in, but will slam it to his face to f#%k off. It’s complicated when your nose has a mind of it’s own…
they, the disintegrating states of america, once were able to tell almost anyone what to do, but that clout has been eroded to close to zip and today there is opposition all over the place – even from japan. although I do agree that the disintegrating states never forgives and never forgets – just think, yes, iran, north korea, libya and russia and so on. the spat with china is entirely caused by the fact that china hoodwinked the certified idiots in washington dc for a long time and, as said, they never forgets and never forgives.
Trump’s style is to blow hot and cold on these issues, at one point offering talks and the next threatening dire consequences. Others like to call him ‘stupid’ but the effect of his rhetoric is to constantly keep the rest of the world off balance and always responding.
That style only works if the other party doesn’t know it’s the usual tactic, ie his various business parties, smaller than him who don’t know eachother. It’s the usual way of bargaining in Bazaars and markets in Iran.
In politics on a global scale such patterns quickly become stale. At best his style only works on the ones who are very desperate, it won’t work on countries like Iran or China, even DPRK.
At the same time, unpredictability is helpful to a degree, as long as you make people keep guessing about you decision. When you become too unpredictable and in a negative way (like when nobody’s sure if you will breach what you agreed upon) nobody wants to deal with you, as simple as that.
Yes I think you are correct. It is stale. I personally don’t know when or if the circle will be broken. I know I would have lost my patience years ago, but then I am so far removed from these type of things that I can not even conceptualize how the thought processes work.
The only ally of the West and NATO that is despicable is Saudi Arabia.
You could be right. But remember NATO is bigger than you think. Now I am just writing from memory so don’t take what I say as necessarily gospel , but I think there are well over 20 countries that are either in NATO or associated with it though some sort of agreement. I personally don’t have as much of a problem with Saudi Arabia as others do. For me it’s all a matter of degree and there is no place that I actually like. For me I just dislike some places more than others.
You forgot Turkey. But then, it is a former nominal ally,
Turkey is so and so. At least, Turkey is not beheading people on the streets.
Sometimes one just has to talk, even to those one hates. This is not well thought out by Iran. Imo Iran is strategically smart but often tactically stupid.
the talks offered by dunny the dunce is primarily to further the cause of the squatters who are hamstrung by iran’s presence in the area and need to get them out of the way and is engaging their enforcer, the disintegrating states of america, for that purpose.
Did not know there were any squatters in the Euphrates Valley, but indeed, one could call IS foreign squatters.
yeah make yourself look stupid stupid. from such comment the sole conclusion is stupidity galore (to be expected).
Nobody wants to make a deal with the Yanks. The Americans break their deals the next morning after they make them.
I hope the USA attacks Iran because Iran will absolutely anihilate the Yanks and ridicule them so hard that they wont dare attack anyone else ever again, that will be the end of the yankie-bulling in the world. Nobody in Europe or in the world (apart of cource from Israel) supports the Yanks.
The dollar is about to collapse too…a war with Iran will help end it all for the Yanks and then the civil war part two of the Americans will be the new thing … justice will prevail in the end.
Hah cowboys are bluffing like in poker, expecting opponent will give up and do what they want. Iran will not step back and I hope USA will attack, then we shall see how inefficent US military is. Without nuclear strike cowboys can not do much.
Who wants to talk to an habitual liar that can’t be trusted?
No! don’t give to the U.S a pretext for war, let them collapse, i wanna see it with popcorn in my hand. They need to feel the same that the USSR felt when it collapsed. If you let them alone between themselves they’ll eat each other.
Why would anyone want to make a deal with the US, after witnessing their bahaviour a year ago, and their subsequent threats against other nations who trade with Iran, thus ignoring illegal US sanctions. The US is a state sponsor of terrorism, the largest in history, which has been responsible for death, destruction, coups, regime change, millions killed and non stop wars for over seventy years.