Donald Trump has amassed thousands of troops for an apparent ground invasion of Iran as the Islamic regime rejects his peace plan with jaw-dropping demands.
The Pentagon ordered around 2,000 paratroopers from the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division to deploy to the Middle East, joining 4,500 Marines already en route, and bringing the total number of ground troops sent to the warzone to almost 7,000.
Trump’s inner circle say he is preparing to invade if Iran rebuffs his diplomatic overtures after the President submitted a 15-point peace plan and requested a ceasefire.
‘Trump has a hand open for a deal and the other is a fist, waiting to punch you in the f***ing face,’ a Trump aide told Axios.
But Iran rejected Trump’s peace plan on Wednesday, which demands Tehran open the Strait of Hormuz and dismantle its nuclear and long-range missile capabilities.
Instead, Tehran seeks to bring the Strait – a chokepoint for roughly a fifth of the world’s oil – under its control, allowing it to charge transit fees on passing vessels, much like Egypt does with the Suez Canal.
Such a move would totally shift the power balance in the Middle East and be anathema to Saudi Arabia, Iran’s biggest regional rival.
Tehran is also demanding the closure of all US bases in the Gulf, reparations, lifting of all sanctions, the continuation of its missile program with no limitations, and an end to Israeli military strikes against its Hezbollah proxy militia in Lebanon.
Donald Trump speaks to reporters in the Oval Office on Tuesday
A Trump official described Iran’s demands as ‘ridiculous’ and ‘unrealistic,’ warning that reaching a deal is now more difficult than before the war
Iran has refuted Trump’s peace plan with far-reaching demands
The Islamic regime is demanding control of the Strait of Hormuz
A Trump official described Iran’s demands as ‘ridiculous’ and ‘unrealistic,’ warning that reaching a deal is now more difficult than before the war began as the President prepares a potential ground invasion force.
US and Iranian diplomats have not spoken through direct contact and instead communicate via Middle Eastern intermediaries from Egypt, Turkey, and Pakistan.
Reports circulated on Tuesday that Trump was seeking a one-month ceasefire with Iran and had submitted a 15-point peace plan for a swift off-ramp from the war.
The 15-point plan, modeled on Trump’s Gaza deal, was confirmed by two officials briefed on the talks.
It includes Iran dismantling all of its nuclear and long-range missile capabilities, as well as opening the Strait of Hormuz, and abandoning its ties to proxy terror groups across the Middle East.
The plan now stands in complete contrast to the demands being issued from Tehran.
Oil futures drop sharply on Tuesday evening, with Brent crude falling from $101 per barrel to $94 per barrel, before rising back to $96 per barrel on Wednesday morning.
Iranian officials have also reportedly refused to meet with Trump’s special envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff, instead insisting that Vice President JD Vance, who is seen as more skeptical of the war, serve as the lead negotiator.
Smoke and flames rise at the site of airstrikes on an oil depot in Tehran on March 7
Thousands of US troops are expected to deploy to the Middle East in the coming days
Trump has come under intense pressure to end the war which has sent global oil prices skyrocketing as Iran strangles the narrow Strait of Hormuz.
Trump announced a five-day halt to US strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure on Monday as he urged Tehran to come to the negotiating table.
Mohammed-Baqer Qalibaf, speaker of Iran’s parliament, has emerged as the country’s de-facto leader, with Trump officials singling him out as their preferred interlocutor.
Qalibaf has denied talks with Washington.
