EA on International Outlets: US-Israel War — Trump’s Deception About “Talks” With Iran

EA on RTE’s PrimeTime: US-Israel War on Iran — Mapping the Trump Camp’s Next Step


I joined the Irish Independent’s Indo Daily podcast on Thursday to evaluate the US-Israel War on Iran, from alleged “talks” to possible American ground operations against Iranian islands.

I put Donald Trump’s chaotic and sometimes contradictory statements into context, including his lack of a “Plan B” as the Iranian regime refuses to surrender and controls the Strait of Hormuz. I talk about the pressure of rising oil prices and falling stock markets that prompted a “rattled” Trump to declare — falsely — “productive conversations” with Tehran.

I describe the Administration’s failed attempt at a “Venezuela model”, trying to promote Iran’s Parliamentary Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf as the Islamic Republic’s leaders. And I set out the differing tracks of US-Iran contacts and the American military pressure threatening an assault on islands such as Kharg, through which more than 90% of Iran’s oil exports pass.

There are genuine efforts by a number of countries at mediation. But I don’t see how you get to negotiations when the Iranians say, “We are not going to negotiate under duress and the threat of an invasion.”

So the Americans will face the choice of whether they ramp up militarily.

The other guest is the Washington bureau chief of The Guardian, David Smith. The host is Tessa Fleming.