Trump rebukes Vance – and withdraws him from Iran talks

US President Donald Trump has appointed his deputy J.D. Vance removed from negotiations with Iran and declared an agreement with Tehran unnecessary.

"We don't need a deal with Iran. Those days are long gone," Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform on Thursday. “We have their money, hundreds of billions of dollars, and we have their straits!” This refers to the Strait of Hormuz, one of the most important routes for the transport of oil and gas.

Instead, Vance should devote “his complete and unrestricted attention” to “massive corruption and crime” in Democratic-run states and cities, the president demanded, naming Minnesota, California and Illinois, among others. "Our budget could quickly be balanced by stopping this large-scale criminal activity. Corruption is in the blood of the Democratic leadership!" Vance has been Trump's top fraud fighter since April and heads an anti-fraud task force.

Most recently, Vance was involved in indirect talks with Iran. According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, he was considering direct talks with senior Iranian security officials. According to CNN, the negotiations had accelerated in the past few days: both sides were working on an agreement that could prevent a return to open war.

Trump's cancellation dampened hopes of a diplomatic solution in the oil market, the Bloomberg news agency reported. The price for a barrel (159 liters) of North Sea Brent oil rose by 3.3 percent on Thursday and was just under $96 on Friday morning.

“The reason for our defeat is the war”

After the midterm elections in early November, Vance cited the war against Iran that began at the end of February as the reason for the Republicans' poor performance. “The reason for our defeat is the war,” he wrote on Platform The Democrats won the majority in both chambers of Congress in the election.

Trump, speaking to reporters after the election, acknowledged that the war played a role: "I think part of it was Iran." But Vance should have added that the war was still worth it, Trump said: "He should have made another statement: If you had to do it again, would you do it again? The answer is yes."

Trump speaks of possible “defeat”

Later on Thursday, Trump spoke again about the Middle East. In an interview with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt, he said new military strikes against Iran were conceivable: "If I saw things going the other way, I would, I would do that. And it's possible that I would do it right now." At the same time, he made it clear that he currently saw no reason for military action.

He would “absolutely” view it as a “defeat” if he left the White House and the “Iran crazy people” were still in power, Trump said in the same interview.