Sea Mines.
“I can’t do my job without News Items.” — Jim Cramer, CNBC.
1. President Donald Trump extended his deadline for Iran to reach a deal with the United States to March 27. Mr. Trump had previously threatened to strike Iranian power plants if Iran did not stop attacks around the Strait of Hormuz by March 23. In extending the deadline, Trump said that Iran agreed to cease uranium enrichment, relinquish its existing stockpiles, and remain “low-key on the missiles.” Trump told reporters that his team is “dealing with a man that I believe is the most respected, not the supreme leader, we have not heard from him.” An Israeli official told Axios that US Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner have spoken to Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf. (Source: understandingwar.org)
2. Reuters:
Trump’s step-back sent share prices higher and oil prices sharply lower to below $100 a barrel, a sudden reversal to a market swoon caused by his weekend threats and Iran’s vows to respond.
Those gains were in jeopardy on Tuesday, however, after Iran’s powerful parliament speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf - who an Israeli official and two other sources familiar with the matter said was the interlocutor in the talks on the Iranian side - said no negotiations had taken place.
Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) said they were launching fresh attacks on U.S. targets, and described Trump’s words as “psychological operations” that were “worn out” and having no impact on Tehran’s fight. (Source: reuters.com)
3. President Trump’s decision to back down from his threat to destroy Iran’s power infrastructure came after US allies and Gulf countries privately warned the president of the dangers of following through with his threat, according to people familiar with the matter. The US president said Monday he was giving Iran a five-day reprieve from his threatened action, pointing to new talks with Tehran he believed could broker a deal that would resolve the conflict. But Trump’s decision came after some allies cautioned that the war was quickly becoming a disaster. Regional partners told the US that permanent damage to Iranian infrastructure would almost inevitably result in a failed state after the conflict ended, according to the people, who described private conversations on the condition of anonymity. (Source: bloomberg.com)
4. Donald Trump has declared that he will jointly run the Strait of Hormuz with Iran after announcing a five-day ceasefire on striking its energy sites. Claiming progress on a peace deal on Monday evening, Mr Trump said America would “jointly control” the key oil route and promised there would be a “very serious form of regime change” in the Islamic Republic. The US president said he was talking with a “respected” Iranian leader who could be “exactly what we’re looking for” and claimed the Islamic Republic was eager for a deal to end the war. Mr Trump said peace was likely but insisted that if negotiations fell apart, the US would “just keep bombing our little hearts out”. (Source: telegraph.co.uk)
