Trump urges Iran to “reason quickly” and conclude an agreement

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday urged Iran to “reason quickly” and conclude an agreement, after days of stagnation in efforts to end the conflict and after a media report indicated that the United States would extend its blockade of Iranian ports.

In a post on the Truth Social platform, Trump said that Iran “has not been able to settle its affairs.” Trump has previously stated that Iran can contact him if it wants to talk, and has repeatedly stressed that Tehran cannot possess a nuclear weapon.

The Wall Street Journal quoted American officials as saying that Trump had instructed aides to prepare for a prolonged blockade of Iran’s ports in an attempt to force it to surrender.

The newspaper also quoted officials as saying that Trump preferred to continue to put pressure on Iran’s economy and oil exports by preventing shipping to and from its ports. Because his other options – resuming the bombing or withdrawing from the conflict – entail greater risks.

Trump wrote in the post on Truth Social on Wednesday, “They don’t know how to sign a non-nuclear agreement. They better get wise to it soon!”, without clarifying what such an agreement would entail.

Iran wants to obtain some kind of American recognition of its right to enrich uranium for what it says are peaceful and civil purposes.

Iran has a stockpile of about 440 kilograms of uranium enriched to a purity of 60 percent, a degree close to that at which uranium can be used to make several nuclear weapons.