The US envoy to the UN has said that President Donald Trump has halted attacks on Iran to give more time for diplomacy, the BBC reports.
Speaking on Fox News on the 26th of July, Mike Waltz said the president was giving the opportunity for talks.
Iran also said it had halted retaliatory strikes on US-friendly countries in the Persian Gulf. The pause follows nearly two weeks of US strikes on targets in Iran, and Tehran retaliating.
Asked whether Trump had now decided to back off from escalating the situation, Waltz told NBC that he could not say so, and that Trump was keeping all options open. He also rejected a New York Times report that Trump administration officials had warned about dwindling aviation ammunition stocks if hostilities escalated further. Waltz stressed that the US military has everything it needs to conduct this campaign as effectively as possible.
Trump had not publicly commented on the latest developments.
Meanwhile, Iran and Oman have held several rounds of technical talks in Tehran to discuss the management of the Strait of Hormuz. It was the dispute over control of the strait that led to the resurgence of hostilities in July and remains a serious obstacle to lasting peace. In June, the US and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding to suspend military operations and open the Strait of Hormuz to traffic. It was also planned to reach an agreement within 60 days to stop the war. However, on the 13th of July, Iranian forces attacked tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, forcing the US to resume strikes and restore the naval blockade.
Iran has responded to the US strikes by attacking US military installations and bases in the Middle East, killing four American soldiers. According to the Iranian Health Ministry, dozens of people have died in the US strikes.
The war in Iran is in its fifth month and is very unpopular among the US public. 57% of Americans are dissatisfied with the conflict, and only 19% are positive about the possible outcome.
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