WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Donald Trump said there are no ongoing- or scheduled- talks with Iran, but that message comes after reports that the administration had established a backchannel with Iran’s Revolutionary Guard.
However, Iran denies any communications are taking place.
The developments come as Iran sets their terms for reopening the Strait of Hormuz — and concerns grow over the conditions facing U.S. sailors.
The stalemate with Iran is also continuing right into the heat of midterm election season, which is not ideal for Republicans.
“The Iran conflict has been the cause, of course, of gas prices going up, its drug on,” said House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La. “I am grateful and I think all Americans of good sense are grateful that we have the greatest fighting force in the world in the history of the world.”
Gas and oil prices are front and center, with the midterm elections just around the corner.
“Now, resolving the conflict after that is what we’re in the process of now,” said Johnson. “Everybody in the world has an interest in the Strait of Hormuz being open for commerce. And so I believe we’ll be getting into a new phase with that where we can calm this down. That will hold gas prices down to planet Earth, and that will also bring down grocery prices.”
President Trump claims the naval blockade in the Strait of Hormuz remains in full force — and that the strait is open to traffic.
“Now, the Strait is open. We’ve got a lot of boats are coming through. People aren’t reporting that. And that may slow down a little bit at some point. But right now, a lot of boats are coming through,” said President Trump. “The naval blockade has been extremely effective.”
Iran’s Parliament speaker says the strait will not fully reopen unless the U.S. lifts its blockade and oil sanctions, releases frozen Iranian assets and ends military operations. The demands come after a June agreement — aimed at stopping hostilities and reaching a final deal — expired Monday.
This as the war continues to take a toll on U.S. forces and munitions. The USS George Washington is heading to the Middle East to relieve the USS Abraham Lincoln — which has been deployed for more than 200 days without a port call.
Democratic lawmakers have raised concerns about crew morale and mental health.
“Instead of saying, ‘I’m going to look into this and I’m going to get to the root of this and I’m going to figure out what’s going on,’ his response is, ‘their deployments haven’t lasted long enough,” said Maryland Governor Wes Moore (D) during a recent interview on CNN’s State of the Union.
Conditions aboard an escorting destroyer are also drawing attention.
The USS Benfold spent four days last month without working toilets or galley services — and also lost air conditioning after a power failure in the South China Sea. According to reports, the George Washington’s deployment to the Middle East also means the U.S. will not have an aircraft carrier in the Pacific.
So far, 18 American troops have been killed and more than 600 wounded — since the war with Iran began February 28.
