Trump Backs Away From another Military Conflict with Iran

By Staff, Agencies

US President Donald Trump backed away from further military action against Iran on Wednesday and called for a new diplomatic effort.

Trump made the remarks in a short speech he made to comment on the Iranian missile attack against the US occupation base of Ain al-Assad in Iraq’s Anbar.

The base is the place from which the US occupation troops launched their attack that led to the assassination of Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guard Corps martyr Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani and the Iraqi resistance Hashd al-Shaabi’s second-in-command martyr Hajj Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis.

The bristling confrontation of the last six days appeared to ease after the Iranian retaliation proved more symbolic than deadly.

“Iran appears to be standing down, which is a good thing for all parties concerned and a very good thing for the world,” Trump said in a televised statement from the Grand Foyer of the White House, flanked by his vice president, cabinet secretaries and senior military officers in their uniforms.

He vowed again not to let Iran obtain a nuclear weapon and warned it against future terrorism or destabilizing actions in the region, but otherwise avoided the bombastic threats that had characterized his public remarks in recent days. Instead, he said he would impose more economic sanctions on Iran and called on NATO allies to become more involved in the Middle East.

“The fact that we have this great military and equipment, however, does not mean we have to use it,” Trump said after outlining American combat potential. “We do not want to use it.” He expressed willingness to negotiate with Iran. “The United States is ready to embrace peace with all who seek it,” he said.

He added that Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China should recognize that the nuclear agreement they sealed along with President Barack Obama in 2015 is effectively dead, and called on them to join him in negotiating a replacement that would go further to constrain Iran’s nuclear ambitions.

“They must now break away from the remnants of the Iran deal, or JCPOA [Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action], and we must all work together toward making a deal with Iran that makes the world a safer and more peaceful place,” Trump said.