Iran latest: Trump tells Iranian protesters ‘help is on its way’ – as Russia brands US military threats ‘categorically unacceptable’
By James Matthews, US correspondent
“Help is on its way.”
Donald Trump’s words could mean a number of things – including a military action and options short of it. Cyber attacks or an increase in economic sanctions are but two.
Certainly, the president is turning the screw on Tehran – rattling his sabre to sharpen the diplomacy.
Recent history raises the prospect of military intervention.
Iran is weaker, militarily, than it’s been for more than two decades. Its security structure was diminished by the 12-day war with Israel last year and, of course, the regime is under pressure from street protest.
Then there’s Trump. He is a president high on the success of the mission to arrest Venezuela’s Nicholas Maduro – a “flawless” operation, he told his audience in Detroit, adding: “I like flawless”.
His difficulty is that Iran is no Venezuela and “flawless” won’t be so easy. Intervention in Iran presents the potential for instability in that country and beyond.
It’s one thing for Trump to position himself as a champion of democracy in Iran, but it’s another to engage in a process that would lead there long-term.
As Trump headed back to Washington DC, vice-President JD Vance was chairing a meeting of National Security Council principals. Cool heads will be wary of an impulsive action.
It will be a balance for Trump between what benefits the people of Iran and being seen to wade in as a foreign power, an ally of Israel, exploiting and undermining Iranian interests.
That’s how the Tehran regime is already seeking to portray it.
There’s also the question of an endgame. Regime change? Change is what thousands of protesting Iranians want, but whether they perceive a Trump input into the process is doubtful, to say the least.
The president was asked by a journalist in Detroit what he meant by “help it’s on its way”. He replied: “You’re going to have to figure that one out.”
So is he, very carefully.
