Mr. Trump said in a post on social media on Tuesday that
Iran had “fully and completely agreed to the highest level Nuclear
inspections,” adding that Iranian officials who claimed otherwise were making
false statements. “If they did not agree to this, there would be no further
negotiations!” he added.
The comments came hours after Esmail Baghaei, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman, responded with a flat “no” when asked if Tehran, in the latest round of peace talks, had agreed to permit inspectors from the United Nations to access its war-damaged nuclear sites. Mr. Baghaei told a news conference in Tehran that the two sides had not discussed nuclear issues in any detail, according to Iranian state media.
There also are other differences of opinion on what the agreement which, as described here, establishes "an immediate and permanent end to military operations while opening a sixty-day window to negotiate a final agreement. The sixty-day limit governs the initial negotiation period, not the duration of the ceasefire."
Additionally, President Trump has contended that any Iranian assets unfrozen as a result of the "understanding" must be used to but agricultrual equipment or medical supplies, while Tehran argues "Iran is the only country who decides what to do with those assets." Trump says the Strait of Hormuz will remain completely open but Iran insists it will maintain control of the Strait and it "will never return to its pre-war conditions."
One side may be lying. Or both sides may be; this is, after all, Iran and Donald Trump's government, neither of which has any credibilty. However, alternatively, the Vance team may be given assurances, or more likely indications, in private of improved Iranian behavior which don't appear in writing.
In such matters, it is wise to consider the words of Kian Tajbakhsh, a dual Iranian and American citizen detained with five other Iranian-Americans, all released in January of 2016 as part of the JCPOA negotiated by the Obama Administration with Tehran. Nevertheless, Tajbakhash has criticized that nuclear deal and supported President Trump's war of choice against Iran. He has been a professor in the USA in both urban planning and foreign affairs.
Tajbakhsh has periodically appeared on Abby Phillip's CNN NewsNight this year and on June 18 explained
Unfortunately, they, you know, there's a kind of misunderstanding of how things work in the Middle East, in the Middle East. In the Middle East, what people say to you in private in English is usually irrelevant and meaningless. It's only- it's only what they will say in their own language publicly that actually counts. So it's actually the opposite of the U.S., you know.
I don't want to insult any politicians here but politicians in the, you know, well, you know, politicians will actually say the truth only in public but in private, they'll say whatever you want to hear. So until we actually see what the terms are and how these negotiations go forward, on the face of it, I, you know, first of all, I wouldn't trust those backchannels and those, those commitments. We'll have to see what they are on paper because that kind of vagueness is exactly where Iran is an expert at, basically using ambiguity for their own purposes.
That's a little reminiscent of Donald Trump's game. Donald, a talented former actor, has charmed Bill Maher, Anthony Scaramucci, and others when he has been in private with them. But that's the opposite of most American politicians who are typically more straightforward in private than in public. If Tajbakshsh is correct- as he probably is- it turns out that Iranian leaders are substantially the opposite. In private, they will tell you what you want to hear while being more revealing in public.
We cannot know for sure whether President Trump and Vice President Vance understand this but know it's advantageous to claim the preliminary agreement is far more advantageous than it is. So they're either lying or being fleeced. Either way, this does not end well.
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