The U.S. military will remain around Iran to ensure enforcement of the truce agreement
U.S. President Donald Trump stressed that nuclear weapons will not be in Tehran’s hands and that the Hormuz Strait will remain open and secure.
He said that all American ships, aircraft, and military personnel will remain in position near and around Iran until Tehran fully complies with the truce agreement.
In a post on Truth Social on Thursday, he wrote: “American ships, aircraft, and military personnel, along with additional ammunition and weapons and everything appropriate and necessary for the effective pursuit and destruction of an already weakened enemy, will remain in position near and around Iran until full compliance with the real agreement that has been reached.”
He also added: “If that does not happen for any reason, which is highly unlikely, then the ‘shooting’ will be the biggest, best, and strongest ever.”
Iran said on Wednesday that moving forward with talks to conclude a permanent peace agreement with the United States would be “illogical” after Israel carried out its most intense strikes yet on Lebanon, resulting in the deaths of more than 250 people.
Trump wrote in his post: “It has long been agreed, and despite all the false rhetoric denying it, that there will be no nuclear weapons and that the Hormuz Strait will be open and secure.”
On the ground, Tehran appears to be cooperating in facilitating maritime navigation. The Iranian Students News Agency reported late Wednesday (Thursday morning local time) that naval forces of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps published a map showing alternative navigation routes in the strait to help passing vessels avoid sea mines.
Meanwhile, the United Nations is seeking to play a role in ensuring stability. The organization said Wednesday that the personal envoy of Secretary-General António Guterres arrived in Iran as part of a regional tour aimed at supporting a “comprehensive and lasting” solution to the Iranian war, and that he is also expected to visit Pakistan, which is acting as a mediator.
A UN spokesperson said in a statement that diplomat Jean Arnault will listen to Iranian views “on ways forward” and will reaffirm Guterres’s commitment to supporting a peaceful settlement.
The spokesperson added that Arnault urged all leaders to “choose the path of peaceful resolution and protect civilians.”
The veteran diplomat, appointed as the Secretary-General’s envoy on the conflict last month, departed for the Middle East on Monday, but the international organization did not disclose the details of all stops on his tour.
UN Deputy Spokesperson Farhan Haq said Arnault is on his way to Tehran, where he intends to meet government officials. He added that Arnault is expected to visit Pakistan, which helped broker the ceasefire, in the coming days.
Haq noted that Guterres welcomed the ceasefire between the United States and Iran, but the United Nations remains concerned about fighting elsewhere.
At a regular UN press briefing, he said: “We urge all concerned parties to adhere to the ceasefire. We are concerned that any violence in one part of the region could undermine the agreements reached in the rest of the region, so we want to ensure that all fighting stops everywhere.”
He added that it is up to the ceasefire parties to determine its terms and how it will be implemented.
He concluded: “Our priority is, of course, to ensure the continuation of the ceasefire and the cessation of fighting, as well as to guarantee freedom of navigation in the Hormuz Strait.”
