US says airstrikes are intended to deter rebel group from attacking Red Sea shipping
Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said earlier today that Iran will respond to Trump’s letter “after full scrutiny”.
The Guardian’s diplomatic editor, Patrick Wintour, has been reporting on the significance of Trump sending the letter to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who as Iran’s supreme leader is the highest authority in the country, and what it signals about the fraught relationship between Washington and Tehran. Here is an extract from his piece:
The letter, the first step Trump has taken towards Iran since he announced the US was seeking to reimpose maximum economic pressure on Iran, comes at a time when the Iranian government is locked in a public dispute on the wisdom of negotiating with the US, and what pre-conditions should be set.
In recent days hardliners opposed to reaching out to the US appeared to have gained a decisive upper hand with MPs impeaching the economy minister, Abdolnaser Hemmati, and the resignation of Javad Zarif, the vice-president for strategy and a long-term advocate of reviving contacts with the west.
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Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2025/mar/17/middle-east-houthis-us-yemen-israel-gaza-palestine-latest-live-news-updates
Author : Yohannes Lowe
Publish date : 2025-03-17 10:24:00
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