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India Today
7 hours ago
- Business
- India Today
Bid to deceive Iran before attack? Decoding Trump's 2-week deadline
Iran-Israel Conflict: Will he, won't he? US President Donald Trump's public flirtation with formally entering the war against Iran has kept the global diplomatic community on its toes. After days of warmongering, threatening Iran that his patience was wearing thin, Trump stumped all on Thursday after his press secretary said the President would wait two weeks before making a as he is, Trump's move has sparked speculation if the two-week deadline was a carefully thought-out ploy to hoodwink Iran and get it to let its guard down or genuinely give Tehran a chance to come to the negotiating table over its nuclear program. advertisementPLOY TO DECEIVE IRAN?While, officially, Trump justified the two-week window to give diplomacy one last try, some experts underscored that it might be a bid to deceive the Iranians and make them complacent. "That could be cover for a decision to strike immediately. Maybe this is a very clever ruse to lull the Iranians into a sense of complacency," James Stavridis, a retired Navy admiral and the former supreme US commander in Europe, told expert told the NYT that it could also be a plan to buy time for the US to bolster its military options in the Middle TIME TO DEPLOY MILITARY ASSETSThe US has so far not been directly involved in Israel's 'Rising Lion', a military operation that it started last week to snuff out Iran's nuclear US fighter jets and refuelling tankers have been deployed to the region. The USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier is stationed in the Arabian Sea with four two-week window will give the US enough time to get its second aircraft carrier in the region - in case it goes on to attack Iran. Moreover, it also gives Israel more time to take out the air defences around the Fordow enrichment plant, Iran's secretive and most fortified nuclear site. This will go a long way in mitigating risks to American which has the capability to quickly enrich uranium to levels close to weapons-grade, is located 80 to 90 meters below the surface. Due to its location, Israel doesn't have the ammunition required to destroy the plant. Only the US does, with its 30,000-pound "bunker buster" munition. The destroyed building of the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) after it was hit a few days earlier in an Israeli strike (AFP) GETTING IRAN TO NEGOTIATING TABLEThe second probable reason for opening a two-week negotiating window is to give a substantial chance to negotiations with Iran and persuade it to immediately halt enrichment of uranium."Based on the fact that there's a substantial chance of negotiations that may or may not take place with Iran in the near future, I will make my decision whether or not to go within the next two weeks," a White House statement attributed to Trump toning down of the rhetoric comes after Trump asked Iranians to "immediately evacuate Tehran", called Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei an "easy target" and demanded Iran's "unconditional surrender".A section of analysts said it was the US president's way of giving diplomacy one more chance. Trump's eyes, for now, will be on the meeting in Geneva between foreign ministers of the United Kingdom, France, Germany and the European Union and Iran's Abbas Washington Post quoted a diplomatic official as saying that the European countries would seek to mediate a "take it or leave it deal" with Iran, in exchange for "regime survival". Trump has repeatedly insisted that any deal with Iran would have to result in "no enrichment of uranium".On Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said while the fall of Iran's regime was not Tel Aviv's objective, it could ultimately be a consequence of the ongoing negotiators have previously suggested a deal could include having an international team visiting Iran and dismantling its enrichment facilities, The Washington Post 600 DEAD IN IRANThe conflict, which is now in its eighth day, has left at least 639 people dead and 1,329 others wounded in Iran, which has borne the maximum trigger for Israel's unprecedented attack was the International Atomic Energy Agency's declaration that Iran was in violation of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty and was dangerously close to acquiring nuclear however, has insisted that its nuclear activities were only for civilian the Trump administration and Israel have not bought the argument. On Thursday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Iran could produce a nuclear weapon in "a couple of weeks" if given the go-ahead by its Supreme Leader InMust Watch
Time of India
10 hours ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Israel-Iran conflict: US removes warplanes from Al Udeid Airbase in Qatar; see satellite images
Al Udeid Air Base outside of Doha, Qatar, after many aircraft on its tarmac left, June 18, 2025 (left), and a MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter hovering over the USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier while operating in the Middle East. (AP) Satellite images show that dozens of US military aircraft are no longer visible on the tarmac at a major US base in Qatar, news agency AFP reported. This may be a step to protect them from possible Iranian air strikes, as the United States considers whether to join Israel in its ongoing conflict with Iran in the Middle East. Images from Planet Labs PBC on June 5, the AFP report says, showed nearly 40 military aircraft at Al Udeid Air Base. These included transport aircraft like the Hercules C-130 and reconnaissance planes. By June 19, a new image showed only three aircraft visible on the tarmac. The US embassy in Qatar said Thursday that access to the base would be limited "out of an abundance of caution and in light of ongoing regional hostilities," and asked personnel to "exercise increased vigilance." — sentdefender (@sentdefender) The White House said on Thursday that US President Donald Trump will make a decision in the next two weeks on whether to support Israel's military strikes on Iran. Iran may respond by targeting US bases in the region. "He will make a decision within the next two weeks" about taking a direct military role in the conflict, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters at a press briefing. Aircraft, personnel, and facilities at Al Udeid base would be "extremely vulnerable" due to its "close proximity" to Iran, Mark Schwartz, a former US Army lieutenant general and defense researcher at the Rand Corporation, was quoted as saying by the AFP. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like They Were So Beautiful Before; Now Look At Them; Number 10 Will Shock You Reportingly Undo Schwartz, who has served in the Middle East, told AFP that even shrapnel could make the aircraft "non-mission capable." "You want to reduce risk to US forces, both personnel and equipment," he said. The aircraft that are no longer visible on the tarmac may have been moved into hangars or relocated to other bases in the area. US forces in the region have been active since Israel began its strikes on Iran almost a week ago. An additional aircraft carrier is on its way, and there has been increased aircraft movement. AFP report also mentions that open-source data tracking of the movement of aircraft found that between June 15 and 18, at least 27 military refueling planes — KC-46A Pegasus and KC-135 Stratotanker — flew from the US to Europe. As of late Wednesday, 25 of those planes remained in Europe, while only two had returned to the United States, according to the data.
Hans India
13 hours ago
- Politics
- Hans India
Trump ready with Iran attack plan?
Washington: US President Donald Trump has approved plans to attack Iran, but has not made a final decision on whether to strike the country. The US President held off from initiating strikes in case Iran agreed to abandon its nuclear programme, a senior intelligence source said. Trump is reportedly considering a US strike on Fordo, an underground uranium enrichment facility in Iran. Senior officials in the United States are getting ready for a possible military strike on Iran in the coming days, according to a Bloomberg report. Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has rejected Trump's demand for unconditional surrender, as the US President said his patience had run out. On Wednesday, Trump said, "I may do it, I may not do it", when asked a question about US involvement in Iran. He also repeated his insistence on Iran's unconditional surrender: 'The next week is going to be very big, maybe less than a week.' Khamenei rebuked Trump in recorded speech, saying that "any US military intervention" would be costly and added: "The Iranian nation will not surrender." It was Khamenei's first appearance since Israel launched what it described as pre-emptive strikes on Friday. Trump brushed off the rejection, saying "good luck", but again declined to disclose his plans. "I mean, nobody knows what I'm going to do," he said. The news of Trump backing strike plans was first reported by the Wall Street Journal. Iran's mission to the United Nations mocked Trump in posts on X: "Iran does NOT negotiate under duress, shall NOT accept peace under duress, and certainly NOT with a has-been warmonger clinging to relevance.' "No Iranian official has ever asked to grovel at the gates of the White House," it added. "The only thing more despicable than his lies is his cowardly threat to 'take out' Iran's supreme leader." Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a video that his country's forces were "progressing step by step" towards eliminating threats posed by Iran's nuclear sites and ballistic missile arsenal. "We control the skies over Tehran. We are striking with tremendous force at the regime of the ayatollahs. We are hitting the nuclear sites, the missiles, the headquarters, the symbols of the regime," he Pete Hegseth, Trump's defence secretary, told a Senate committee that the Pentagon was prepared to execute any order given by Trump. His comments came amid a build-up of American forces in the Middle East. A carrier strike group led by the USS Nimitz aircraft carrier was steaming from south-east Asia to join another strike group led by the USS Carl Vinson, already in the Gulf. Various air assets including refuelling tankers were also seen on flight trackers moving from Europe, with reports of F-22 and F-35 strike aircraft following. The US State Department said Secretary of State Marco Rubio would meet UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy in Washington DC on Thursday, for talks expected to focus on Iran. So far, the US has not made a formal request to use the UK's military bases in Diego Garcia or Cyprus to conduct strikes against Iran. Normally, the US would first inform its ally if it intended to conduct offensive operations from those bases. A British source said it was believed "all options" were on the table in Washington but there was no complete picture of America's intent. The US embassy in Jerusalem on Wednesday issued an evacuation plan for American citizens currently in Israel. It was unclear how many Americans were seeking to leave Israel or whether the US military would assist with the evacuation flights.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Pentagon sends warplanes, aircraft carrier to Middle East as Iran-Israel conflict rages
WASHINGTON – The Pentagon has shifted warplanes and an aircraft carrier to the Middle East as the conflict between Israel and Iran continues to rage, but the moves have been defensive in nature as the U.S. observes rather than participates in Israel's punishing air campaign, according to U.S. officials. The moves by the U.S. military have been made with an eye toward protecting American troops stationed in the Middle East, a senior Defense official said. There are about 40,000 U.S. service members there. "We are postured defensively in the region to be strong, in pursuit of a peace deal," Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told Fox News in a June 16 interview. The Pentagon has not been involved in Israel's offensive strikes on Israel, according to a second U.S. official who was not authorized to speak publicly. Iran has been warned that any strike on U.S. troops will be met with a strong response. That official characterized the movement of additional forces to the region as a show of force. There have been indications that U.S. troops have been targeted at times by Iran but no attacks have followed, the official said. The aircraft being moved to the Middle East include air refueling tankers from Europe, according to the Defense official who also spoke on condition of anonymity. Refuelers would be necessary to keep fighter aircraft aloft as they provide cover for troops and installations on the ground. The Pentagon has also shifted 21 refuelers based in the United States to Europe, backfilling those sent to the Middle East, the U.S. official said. That move suggests the war between Israel and Iran could continue for some time. The USS Nimitz aircraft carrier has dozens of warplanes aboard. It is about a week away from the Middle East, the U.S. official said. The U.S. had already moved the USS Carl Vinson, another massive aircraft carrier, to the region in April to take part in the Trump administration's strikes on Houthi forces in Yemen. In May, B-52 bombers joined B-2 bombers at Diego Garcia, a Navy base off the tip of India around 2,300 miles from Iran. B-2 aircraft can carry bunker buster bombs, which could be used to target Iran's nuclear facilities. Meanwhile, U.S. ballistic missile interceptors remain on the ground in Israel and at sea on warships nearby in the Mediterranean. Israel has made a significant dent in Iran's ballistic missile capability, and its air defenses, the U.S. official said. The ongoing aerial war between Israel and Iran entered its fifth day on June 17 as Israel pounded Iranian cities with bombs and some Iranian missiles evaded Israel's iron dome defense system. More than 220 Iranians have been killed and at least 1,200 injured since the bombardment began, Iranian state media reported. Two dozen Israelis have been killed in Iranian missile attacks, officials said. A day earlier, President Donald Trump hurriedly left a G7 summit in Canada, citing the escalating crisis in the Middle East. In a Truth Social post, he urged people to "immediately evacuate Tehran." After French President Emmanuel Macron said Trump was on his way to work towards a ceasefire, the U.S. president retorted in another post that "he has no idea why I am now on my way to Washington, but it certainly has nothing to do with a Cease Fire. Much bigger than that." This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: US moves warplanes, ships to Middle East as Iran-Israel conflict spirals
Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trump undecided on joining war on Iran as Khamenei warns him not to attack
Donald Trump said he had not decided whether or not to take his country into Israel's new war, as Iran's supreme leader said the US would face 'irreparable damage' if it deployed its military to attack. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Israel had made a 'huge mistake' by launching the war, in his first comments since Friday. 'The Americans should know that any US military intervention will undoubtedly be accompanied by irreparable damage,' he said in a statement read out by a presenter on state TV. Tehran was preparing missiles and other equipment to strike US bases in the region if Washington joined the war, the New York Times reported, citing US intelligence officials. Hours later, Trump said Iranian officials had made contact to request a meeting and proposed a visit to the White House. He told reporters on the White House lawn that he felt 'it's very late to be talking' but he had not yet made a final decision about entering the war. 'I may do it, I may not do it. I mean, nobody knows what I'm going to do,' he said. That lack of clarity about what comes next may extend to the president himself, who was still in deal-making mode, one ally said. The US is understood to want to keep all its options open to exert maximum pressure on Tehran. It was moving air tankers for midair refuelling to Spain and Greece, where they could be used to supply B-2 bombers on a long run from the Whiteman airbase in Missouri to Iran. It is understood that no request has been put to the UK for use of the Diego Garcia airbase in the Indian Ocean for a B-2 bombing run or of the Akrotiri airbase in Cyprus for the refuelling aircraft, though the latter is considered likely. Other US military assets are on their way. The Pentagon ordered the USS Nimitz aircraft carrier to sail from Singapore to the Middle East, which is expected to take between five and seven days. The USS Carl Vinson is already in the Arabian Sea. Qatar and Oman were trying to mediate a ceasefire, the Jerusalem Post reported, hours after at least one aircraft associated with the Iranian government flew to Muscat in Oman, flight tracking showed. Iran sent a message that it was willing to negotiate a deal with the US, but Israel needed to 'calm things down', a source told the Jerusalem Post. Trump's claim that Iranians had offered to come to the White House for talks prompted an enraged response from Iran's mission to the UN. 'No Iranian official has ever asked to grovel at the gates of the White House,' the mission posted on a social media account. The foreign ministers of the UK, France and Germany are planning to meet their Iranian counterpart, Abbas Araghchi, in Geneva on Friday in what could represent a potential diplomatic breakthrough after five days of Israeli bombing. Final confirmation from Tehran is still pending, but if confirmed it would represent the first face-to-face diplomatic meeting since the crisis began. In a social media post late on Wednesday, Araghchi wrote that Iran 'remain[s] committed to diplomacy. As before, we are serious and forward-looking in our outlook.' The talks in Geneva will focus on how Iran is willing to reduce or close its nuclear programme, and will also be attended by the EU foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas. But Araghchi has refused to meet Donald Trump's envoy, Steve Witkoff, on the grounds that the US is supporting Israel's attacks. The Trump administration had initially distanced itself from the war, saying Israel had acted alone, but in recent days it has stepped up its rhetoric and its military presence in the Middle East. Iran's Fordow nuclear facility is at the heart of demands for the US to join the war, both in Israel and from hawks in Washington. Damage from strikes on other facilities could be repaired within months, Israeli military officials and nuclear experts say. Destroying or crippling Fordow would have much more of a long-term impact. It is buried deep below a mountain near the holy city of Qom, and the only munitions that could possibly damage or destroy it are the most powerful US bunker-buster bombs, which only US B-2s can carry. Israel's national security adviser, Tzachi Hanegbi, said the war had been an entirely Israeli campaign but it 'will not end without damaging Fordow', in an interview with Israel's Channel 12 television. If the US does not join, Israel may still have military options but they would be riskier and more complicated. It could fly in special operations troops for a ground operation, like one that targeted a missile factory in Syria last year, or disable Fordow by attacking critical support systems such as its power supply. Israel says it launched the war in self-defence, to destroy Iran's nuclear programme, but Netanyahu and several ministers have made no secret of their desire for regime change. Trump reportedly vetoed an Israeli plan to assassinate Khamenei, and critics have questioned why Israel targeted civilian institutions such as the state broadcaster. On Wednesday, the defence minister, Israel Katz, said Israel was bombing 'symbols of power' in Iran and suggested the regime could be in its last days. 'A tornado is sweeping through Tehran,' he wrote in a post on X. 'Symbols of power are being bombed and collapsing, from the broadcasting authority and soon other targets, and masses of residents are fleeing. This is how dictatorships collapse.' The escalating conflict has prompted a growing international chorus of concern. The Russian president, Vladimir Putin, offered to mediate between Iran and Israel, after one of his top diplomats urged Washington not to consider 'speculative options' for intervention. On a sixth night of attacks, Israel bombed a site that manufactured uranium centrifuges and also said it had targeted a missile component factory and destroyed five attack helicopters. Iran's military has been battered but not fully destroyed. An advanced Israeli drone was shot down on Wednesday, despite Israel claiming control of the skies over western Iran and Tehran. Overnight, Iran fired 15 missiles at Israel. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) confirmed that Israeli strikes had hit two centrifuge productions in Iran, one in the capital and another just outside it. Iran has reported at least 224 deaths from Israeli attacks, mostly civilians, although it has not updated that toll for several days. A US-based watchdog, Human Rights Activists in Iran, says at least 585 people have been killed and more than 1,300 injured. Iranian attacks on Israel have killed 24 people, all civilians. Israeli air defences have intercepted most of the 400 missiles fired by Tehran, with only about 10% hitting targets inside the country. Israel could become more vulnerable if the war continues much longer as supplies of its most effective air-defence missiles are running low, the Wall Street Journal has reported, citing a US official. Its Arrow interceptors are complex missiles that cost several million dollars each, and they have a long production process. Related: Israel's assumption US would get drawn into Iran war is being put to the test Although the US has been supporting Israel's defences with Thaad ground-based systems, interceptions by F-16 jets and missiles launched by the navy, it does not have unlimited supplies of these defensive systems either. Iran is thought to still have a substantial proportion of the estimated 2,000 missiles that were in its arsenal at the start of the war. Israeli strikes have focused on launcher systems that are needed to fire them. Additional reporting by Quique Kierszenbaum
