Iran ceasefire deal a partial win for Trump - but at a high cost
Iran ceasefire deal a partial win for Trump - but at a high cost
Iran ceasefire deal gives Trump a way out of war - but at a high cost
The path to the two-week ceasefire with Iran may have fundamentally altered the way the rest of the world views the US.
And even if Iran does fully open Hormuz – without conditioning passage on tolls or other payments – its ability to control the key geopolitical chokepoint is more clear now than ever.
In a statement after Trump's ceasefire message, Iranian foreign minister Seyed Aragchi said that Iran would halt its "defensive operations" and allow safe passage through the Hormuz "via coordination with Iran's armed forces". He added that the US had accepted the "general framework" of the Iranian 10-point plan.
That plan includes the US withdrawing its military forces from the region, lifting economic sanctions on Iran, paying compensation for war damages and allowing Iran to maintain control over Hormuz. It is hard to imagine Trump actually agreeing to any of those conditions – a sign that the next two weeks of negotiations could be treacherous.
Such a partial pyrrhic victory.