Iran's Demands Come From A Sense of Victory

 

The Very Stable Genius and con man the Malignant Fascist bumbled his way into a war with Iran that has backfired spectacularly on him. Munitions shortages, including precision missiles, are now in extremely short supply, and the Strait of Hormuz remains essentially closed to traffic.  A second front has opened in Yemen with the Houthis attacking Saudi shipping in the Red Sea. Iran, as the MF would say, holds a lot of  cards.  From the Associated Press:

"The Strait of Hormuz is, by some accounts, named for a Zoroastrian deity destined to emerge victorious after a 9,000-year standoff with an adversary.

Iran’s leaders feel their own victory is at hand and won’t require the same epic patience.

They are betting that military pressure will ultimately force the United States to accept their control over the crucial waterway for global energy — and that time is on their side.

They know about the diminishing stockpiles of key U.S. weapons such as advanced missile interceptors. They know the war is deeply unpopular with Americans. They know that as long as the strait is largely closed, the price of gas and other goods will stay high ahead of U.S. congressional elections in November. They know that trying to open it by force would be costly and may require American ground troops. They know their Houthi allies in Yemen could widen the war and disrupt another major trade route." (our emphasis)

They clearly know, too, that the MF is a dangerous moron, who can't be trusted and who is desperate to find a way out of the mess he and his war whisperer Netanyahu got into.  Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine is also reported to be urging an "exit ramp" from the debacle, as the war degrades U.S. military capabilities in the event of another national security crisis.

A "deal" seems to be evolving that is patterned after the 14 point Memorandum of Understanding developed earlier, but Iran, knowing they have the orange MF over an oil barrel, is now demanding war reparations, an end to the blockade of Iranian ports, and an end to the war with it and its allies (Hezbollah, Houthis) before any negotiations proceed.  In weighing this "deal," the MF will also have to contend with an aggressive Netanyahu, who would see it as a disaster for Israel's security and his own political future.  The next few days and weeks will see if the MF caves or not.