Trump Negotiators Fear Iran Too Fractured to Sign Deal
While Trump's envoys reportedly still believe a deal to end the conflict and address "what's left of Iran's nuclear program" remains within reach, a deepening concern has taken hold — that there is simply no one in Tehran "empowered to say yes."
The report paints a picture of an Iranian leadership in disarray. Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is described as "barely communicating," while Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) generals and Iran's civilian negotiators are said to be "openly at odds over strategy."
Axios attributed part of this internal breakdown to Israel's assassination of Ali Larijani in March — the former secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council. His successor, Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, has proven "not effective" at bridging the divide between the IRGC, the civilian leadership, and the supreme leader, the report said.
The diplomatic signals from Tehran have also been erratic. On Monday evening, Iran appeared to indicate through Pakistani intermediaries that it was open to negotiations — only for that opening to evaporate by Tuesday morning, replaced with a demand that Washington end its naval blockade.
On the US side, Trump is said to believe that military operations have largely run their course and that further strikes offer diminishing returns. He is reportedly reluctant to authorize renewed military action until every diplomatic avenue has been exhausted — a reflection, the report suggests, of mounting domestic unpopularity surrounding the conflict.
Nevertheless, media warned that patience has its limits. Should Pakistani mediators fail to deliver Iran to the negotiating table within Trump's undefined but finite window, military options are expected to return to the fore.
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