President Donald Trump said Thursday he will delay a threatened strike on Iran’s energy infrastructure and extend his deadline for Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz until April 6.
Even as everyone has learned by now his words don’t mean anything “real”, there’s still something to be gleaned.
The fact that he’s even looking for an exit speaks to how far he is “committed” to this path. So sure, the “peace talks” don’t really exist, but the fact he says they do exist and keeps claiming they are going well means he wants to reverse course on the flimsiest excuse. So if the circumstances might give him an excuse, it might go away. Iran’s reactions seems they are disinclined to give him that excuse easily, so the chance isn’t huge, but his deadline extension based on nothing suggests he is open to other opportunities to let him back out while somehow saving face. He still cares about saving face enough to make the chances problematic, but at least he’s looking for an exit.
Conversely if he said that there’s no need to let up until the job is done, and his forces are going to imminently secure the strait, then that’s a lie that suggests to not expect relief anytime soon.
It’s about the direction the lie indicates he wants things to go and how that may play into outcomes.
Even as everyone has learned by now his words don’t mean anything “real”, there’s still something to be gleaned.
The fact that he’s even looking for an exit speaks to how far he is “committed” to this path. So sure, the “peace talks” don’t really exist, but the fact he says they do exist and keeps claiming they are going well means he wants to reverse course on the flimsiest excuse. So if the circumstances might give him an excuse, it might go away. Iran’s reactions seems they are disinclined to give him that excuse easily, so the chance isn’t huge, but his deadline extension based on nothing suggests he is open to other opportunities to let him back out while somehow saving face. He still cares about saving face enough to make the chances problematic, but at least he’s looking for an exit.
Conversely if he said that there’s no need to let up until the job is done, and his forces are going to imminently secure the strait, then that’s a lie that suggests to not expect relief anytime soon.
It’s about the direction the lie indicates he wants things to go and how that may play into outcomes.