Trump Says US Has ‘Militarily Defeated’ Iran as Negotiations Stall

US President Donald Trump told Britain’s King Charles III and other guests at a state dinner Tuesday that Iran has been “militarily defeated,” in his first public comments on the sensitive topic during the ongoing royal visit.

“We have militarily defeated that particular opponent,” Trump said at the White House dinner, adding, “Charles agrees with me even more than I do — we’re never going to let that opponent have a nuclear weapon.”

This comes as talks aimed at ending the war in the Middle East have reached a standstill, with the United States saying it is considering the new Iranian proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, while Tehran said that Washington is no longer in a position to dictate terms.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Iran’s proposal was “better than what we thought they were going to submit”, he insisted any eventual deal had to be “one that definitively prevents them from sprinting towards a nuclear weapon”.

Iranian Defense Ministry spokesman Reza Talaei-Nik said Washington “must abandon its illegal and irrational demands”, adding the United States was “no longer in a position to dictate its policy to independent nations”.

Mediation efforts and negotiations have so far failed to achieve a permanent end to the war and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, despite a ceasefire in effect for nearly three weeks.

Saudi Arabia welcomed leaders and officials from across the Gulf to discuss the ongoing crisis in the region triggered by the US-Israeli war against Iran. Following the meeting, a statement released by the GCC’s secretary general slammed Iran’s “blatant attacks” on the Gulf countries.

In Lebanon, its civil defense said an Israeli strike on Tuesday killed three of its members taking part in a rescue operation in the south of the country. Lebanon’s Health Ministry added that two other people also died. (AFP)