Trump says the Iran ceasefire is ‘over.’ Is diplomacy still a viable path forward?
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How did the U.S. and Iran reach a ceasefire framework just weeks ago?
It's Consider This, where every day we go deep on one big news story. Today, President Trump's about-face on negotiations with Iran. What a difference three weeks makes. It has been about that long since the U.S. and Iran agreed on a framework to end the war. The hope was to de-escalate the fighting, work toward peace, and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, the waterway that is critical to the global energy trade. But this week, the plan began to unravel.
The U.S. says it's launching strikes on Iran after it says Iran attacked commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz. U.S. Central Command says in a statement that, quote, While meeting NATO leaders on Wednesday, President Trump discussed the ceasefire.
I think it's over. I don't want to deal with them anymore. They're scum. You know what scum is? They're scum. They're sick people.
Consider this. Only days ago, it seemed like the U.S. and Iran were working toward ending the conflict. But overnight, that changed. And now both sides have expressed deep mistrust of each other. Is diplomacy still possible? From NPR, I'm Scott Detrow.
What events caused the ceasefire plan to start unraveling this week?
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It's Consider This from NPR. Just weeks ago, it appeared the U.S. and Iran were on a path toward peace, agreeing to a ceasefire and to work on a deal to end the war. But that all changed this week. Now President Trump says the ceasefire is over, calling Iranian leadership scum. To talk through the latest and what might happen next, we have called up Ambassador Nicholas Burns. He was the U.S. ambassador to NATO under President George W. Bush and led negotiations on Iran's nuclear program. Welcome.
Thanks so much, Scott.
Let's just start with this. What has your reaction been to the last two days of events?
I think it's clear that Iran does not want to honor the ceasefire. The rulers in Tehran clearly believe they have a stronger will than the United States, that they can outlast us, that can actually get a better deal in the straighter form moves where they're the toll keeper, where they can exact tolls of all commercial shipping. Imagine what kind of power that would give them I think that's where they're heading, and that's why you've seen the administration push back with these airstrikes over the last couple of days because our American objective has to be, and the Trump administration has been clear about this, the Strait has to be open to commercial shipping. It's a vital international waterway, and we can't abide Iran becoming a tollkeeper, having this coercive impact over commercial shipping.
Do you think that's true? Do you think that despite the fact it's Iran being bombed, it's Iranians being killed, that Iran has more tolerance to wait this out and let this keep going?
Unfortunately, the nature of this regime in Tehran is I don't think they've ever demonstrated that they have a clear interest in the welfare of their own people, but they clearly have an interest in the survival of their regime and the empowerment of that regime.
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