48-Hour Ultimatum: US Backs Off From Iran Attack, As World Leaders Heave Sighs of Relief
By PHC Telegraph
World leaders who have been watching the escalating situation in the Middle East on Monday heaved sighs of relief as the President of the United States Donald Trump announced the suspension of a planned attack on Iran’s strategic power installations.
Trump who had issued a 48-hour ultimatum to Iran urging it to end the clamp down on the Strait of Hormuz or face the wrath of the United States said as the deadline approached that his country has resolved to back down due to ongoing conversations with Iran.
Coming from a country whose leader had threatened to obliterate Iranian high profile possessions, the decision to abort the strike came as a surprise.
But Trump warned that the United States would be obliged to hit Iranian targets at the expiration of a five-day period if agreements to reopen the Strait are not reached.
In diplomatic circles, Washington’s offer to avert a catastrophic exchange in the Gulf provided more time for third parties seeking to broker the understanding that is much needed to end the conflict between the US, Israel which is accused of misleading thecUS and Iran.
Earlier, Iran had warned that if President Trump of the United States dares to carry out any attack on its sensitive facilities, all American interests as well as the energy infrastructure in the Gulf region would be destroyed.
In the meantime, Iran whose new generation missiles are finding targets in Israel and the Gulf states has denied engaging in direct talks with the United States.
It is not clear who the go between is at the moment between the United States and Iran. The United Arab Emirates has said it is not involved in any negotiation.
NATO had expressed confidence that the Strait of Hormuz would be opened to traffic, but did not say publicly how that would be achieved.
Countries like Britain, Germany and France have refused to be drawn into the conflict, describing what is happening in the Middle East as, an American problem.
Russia is believed to have warned the United States of the danger which lies ahead if it decides to go ahead with the war against Iran.
Nations like China as well as the Vatican are equally cautioning that a peaceful resolution of the Iranian conflict would be most appropriate.
Nonetheless, Pakistan has offered to mediate even President Trump’s say progress is being made at the roundtable.
Five days separate the world from the prospect of an escalating regional crisis and the hunt for a peaceful settlement in the Middle East.
The decision by Trump to ditch the ultimatum as the clock ticked may have meant in the face of pressure diplomacy that America blinked first after issuing a threat. This is how it is being framed in several critical circles.
Somehow, the world appears safer and even better as a result of Donald Trump’s announcement. Instead of opening the strait by the sheer use of force, America’s posture has created room for a flurry of diplomatic exchanges to halt the conflict and created a temporary ceasefire which now raises hope beyond the Middle East.
Already, Saudi Arabian ports are preparing in anticipation for the influx of post war shipping.
Oil prices which soared dangerously since the Gulf war began weeks ago significantly dropped at the hint of the possible de-escalation of tensions in the Middle East.
The time is ticking and most people all over the world – diplomats, world leaders and military strategists – who are afraid of the impact that the Gulf War may have on the global North and the global South are praying that differences between warring countries would be resolved diplomatically rather than on the battlefront.
