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President Donald Trump is sharpening his message to Iran as crucial negotiations approach ending hostilities, cautioning that the country\u2019s leaders are in a position of weakness while trying to exploit global shipping routes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe Iranians don\u2019t seem to realize they have no cards, other than a short-term extortion of the World by using International Waterways,\u201d Trump wrote on TRUTH Social.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trump\u2019s comment highlights growing frustration in the U.S. regarding threats to vital maritime routes, especially the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial chokepoint that carries a significant portion of the world\u2019s oil supply. \u201cThe only reason they are alive today is to negotiate!\u201d Trump added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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The president also wrote, \u201cTheir Navy is gone, their Air Force is gone, their Anti Aircraft apparatus is nonexistent, Radar is dead.\u201d He noted further that Iran\u2019s missile and drone infrastructure has been \u201clargely obliterated,\u201d along with the weapons themselves, and said the country\u2019s longtime leaders \u201care no longer with us.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A senior U.S. delegation is preparing for direct talks led by Vice President JD Vance and including Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and senior adviser Jared Kushner. They are scheduled to travel to Pakistan, where they will meet with Iranian officials for discussions on Saturday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe only thing they have going is the threat that a ship may \u2018bunk\u2019 into one of their sea mines,\u201d he wrote, adding that \u201call 28 of their mine dropper boats are also lying at the bottom of the sea.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe\u2019re now starting the process of clearing out the Strait of Hormuz as a favor to Countries all over the World,\u201d Trump said, listing China, Japan, South Korea, France, and Germany. Trump also said that multiple large tankers are enroute to the U.S. \u201cto LOAD UP with Oil.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sen. John Fetterman told Fox News host Jesse Watters Thursday evening that much of the U.S. media was \u201ccarrying water\u201d for Iran, likely to spite President Trump, though he refused to call out his fellow Democrats for the same thing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Watters asked, \u201cSenator, do some members of your party think Trump is more dangerous than the Iranians?\u201d \u2013 a question that stems from criticism of the president over the murderous and terrorism-supporting regime in Tehran, despite the fact that Democrats have joined Republicans in condemning Iran\u2019s nuclear weapons pursuits for decades.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI can\u2019t speak for my other Democrats, but the American media has, essentially, become \u2014 carrying water for Iran,\u201d Fetterman said. \u201cAnd they\u2019re describing the kinds of circumstances, then they forget the way Iran has behaved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd why can\u2019t we just call what Iran has been \u2014 and what it continues to do, those things? America is the force of good in the world, and holding Iran accountable, what they\u2019ve done, is important,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n