Trump Cabinet Gathers on Iran 05/27 06:32

   President Donald Trump will meet with his Cabinet on Wednesday at a 
precarious moment for talks aimed at ending the war with Iran, just days after 
insisting that his administration and Tehran had "largely negotiated" a 
settlement but with the negotiations still in a state of flux.

   WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Donald Trump will meet with his Cabinet on 
Wednesday at a precarious moment for talks aimed at ending the war with Iran, 
just days after insisting that his administration and Tehran had "largely 
negotiated" a settlement but with the negotiations still in a state of flux.

   As he prepares to huddle with his top aides, Trump is projecting confidence 
that he's closing in on a deal that will reopen the Strait of Hormuz and 
provide him a credible argument that Iran's nuclear capability has been 
diminished enough to declare victory, winding down a conflict that's been 
politically unpopular for Republicans.

   But as things stand, Trump also risks finding closure to his war of choice 
comes with an unsatisfactory ending.

   The emerging deal puts off many critical issues to be resolved later and has 
already exposed the Republican president to fierce criticism -- even from some 
of his own supporters -- that Iran's hardline leaders will emerge from the 
conflict battered but emboldened. It all comes to a head just as the midterm 
elections to determine control of Congress come into focus and as Republicans 
worry that rising costs and fuel prices are darkening the American electorate's 
mood.

   Talks were further complicated after U.S. forces carried out what the 
Pentagon called "defensive" strikes on missile launch sites and mine-laying 
boats in southern Iran on Monday. The U.S. said it acted with "restraint" in 
light of the weekslong ceasefire, while Iran decried the action as a sign of 
"bad faith and unreliability."

   Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Tuesday that talks with Iran on 
reopening the strait and extending the ceasefire -- a period that the 
administration says could be used to hash out the finer details of a nuclear 
agreement -- will take several more days. "He's either going to make a good 
deal or no deal," Rubio told reporters.

   Trump took to social media on Tuesday to grumble that even if Tehran were to 
offer a complete surrender, the media would paint the end of the conflict as 
Iran scoring "a Masterful and Brilliant Victory."

   Some Trump backers are skeptical

   While Trump insists a deal is within reach, there appears to be daylight 
between the U.S. and Iran on several key issues. The president is also facing 
scrutiny from Republican allies, including Sens. Roger Wicker of Mississippi, 
Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Ted Cruz of Texas, who have said the terms 
seem too favorable to Tehran.

   They're balking at aspects of the deal that have emerged publicly that they 
say too closely resemble the nuclear agreement reached with Iran by Democratic 
President Barack Obama, which Trump scrapped during his first term.

   Under the potential deal, Tehran would agree to give up its stockpile of 
highly enriched uranium -- a key Trump demand -- in return for sanctions 
relief. That's according to two regional officials and one senior Trump 
administration official, all of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity to 
discuss the sensitive negotiations.

   One regional official, with direct knowledge of the negotiations, said how 
Iran would give up the uranium would be subject to further talks during a 
60-day period. Some would likely be diluted, while the rest would be 
transferred to a third country, the official said.

   Iran has 440.9 kilograms (972 pounds) of uranium that is enriched up to 60% 
purity, a short, technical step from weapons-grade levels of 90%, according to 
the International Atomic Energy Agency. Iran has not publicly committed to 
giving up its uranium.

   Trump on Monday said in a Truth Social post that the uranium, which is 
believed to be buried under nuclear sites battered by U.S. airstrikes last 
year, would either be turned over to the U.S. or "destroyed in place or, at 
another acceptable location, with the Atomic Energy Commission, or its 
equivalent, being witness to this process and event." The comment signals a 
softening of Trump's previous insistence that the U.S. take control of Iran's 
uranium stockpile.

   How Trump's plan affects Israel's war in Lebanon

   Another key issue unresolved is whether the ceasefire will also cover 
Israel's operations against Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed militant group in 
Lebanon. Iran has insisted that Lebanon must be covered by any ceasefire 
agreement negotiated with the United States.

   The administration appears to leave some wiggle room on the Lebanon 
question. The emerging memorandum of understanding calls for a ceasefire 
between the U.S. and its allies against Iran and its proxies, such as 
Hezbollah, but also underscores Israel's right to act against imminent threats 
and in self-defense.

   Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday announced that the Israeli 
military is "deepening its operation" in Lebanon.

   Jonathan Conricus, a former spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces, said 
Israel expects that Iran would quickly move to direct any sanctions relief to 
restore its military capability and boost proxy groups, including Hezbollah and 
Hamas in Gaza.

   "We're not done fighting, because the Iranian regime isn't done," said 
Conricus, who is a senior fellow with the Foundation for Defense of 
Democracies, a hawkish Washington think tank.

   'Stunned silence' as Trump ties Abraham Accords to Iran deal

   Trump on Monday said any agreement to end the Iran war should include a 
requirement for several additional countries, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar and 
Pakistan, to join the Abraham Accords, the U.S.-brokered agreements from 
Trump's first term aimed at normalizing diplomatic and economic relations with 
Israel.

   Trump's optimism that the other Middle Eastern and majority Muslim countries 
could soon sign on to the accords might be overly ambitious.

   For example, Saudi Arabia, the most significant power in the Arab world and 
long seen as the biggest prize for the normalization effort, has insisted that 
establishing a guaranteed path to a Palestinian state remains a precondition. 
It's something that Israel vehemently opposes.

   Trump made the Abraham Accords push during a call with leaders of Mideast 
allies over the weekend.

   Barbara Leaf, a retired U.S. ambassador to the United Arab Emirates and 
senior State Department official during President Joe Biden's Democratic 
administration, said officials from Gulf countries who were on the call told 
her that Trump's pitch was greeted by "stunned silence." A person familiar with 
the call disputed that characterization. The person spoke on the condition of 
anonymity about the private conversation.

   Leaf, a distinguished diplomatic fellow at the Middle East Institute, said 
that Middle Eastern allies of the United States recognize that Iran will likely 
use any money from sanctions relief to bolster its military capabilities. 
Still, they have been supportive of Trump pursuing an end to the conflict.

   "They see no other way out," Leaf said of American allies in the region. 
"And they see no other way out because of many of these early mistakes that the 
president and the administration made in conducting the war."