Trump Gives Iran a Lifeline and Calls It Peace

 https://www.thefp.com/p/trump-gives-iran-a-lifeline-and-calls

President Donald Trump gave himself a birthday present on Sunday and declared that peace has been achieved after his second Iran war. “This Great Deal will bring Peace and Security to the whole Region. Many presidents have tried to make Peace with Iran, and all have failed before me,” he posted on Truth Social Sunday evening. “With the opening of the Strait upon the signing of the Deal on Friday, for purposes of mine removal, oil will flow on both ends again for the Region, and the World!”

Don’t break out the ticker tape just yet. This is not a treaty, not a deal, and not a peace agreement. It’s a memorandum of understanding to negotiate the terms of a broader peace over the next 60 days. Put another way, it is yet another ceasefire. In this respect, the agreement does not achieve any of the aims that Trump laid out on February 28 when he launched the second Iran war with Israel.

The only tangible benefit of this memorandum of understanding for the U.S. and the global economy is that Iran will agree to open the Strait of Hormuz for 60 days. Trump believed he had achieved that more than two months ago in April. That turned out to be a ceasefire in name only. In other words, Trump is celebrating an agreement that temporarily solves a problem his war helped create.

Because Iran has not agreed to anything with regard to its nuclear material, ballistic missiles, or support for terrorist proxies throughout the Middle East. As for Trump’s statements early on in the war encouraging the Iranian people to seize their institutions and rise up against their oppressors, that objective has been placed inside a memory hole.

The details of sanctions relief, cash payments, and the unfreezing of assets are still unknown. But a senior U.S. official on Friday told reporters that Iran will see no sanctions relief or unfrozen assets, or receive any cash until it delivers on its other obligations. It’s possible that the U.S. won’t pay Iran’s regime, but America’s allies will. Over the weekend, the United Arab Emirates denied an earlier report that it had already unfrozen some $20 billion in Iranian assets. One U.S. military official working closely on the negotiations, however, said that Iran would see some economic gains before the substantive negotiations began, but the details were still being haggled over. Iran’s state-directed Mehrs News Agency reported Sunday that the U.S. has agreed to unfreeze $12 billion in Iranian assets this week before negotiations begin, with another $12 million to be released during the 60 days of talks.

Trump says Obama’s Iran nuclear deal was ‘horrible’ but his is unlikely to be any better

 https://www.yahoo.com/news/politics/articles/trump-says-obama-iran-nuclear-195543664.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAIc5ZlvuuBUu8EGTNbxjq0VLJsscajgVsZRPG9aDVqiF3piYugBfWuxArEP2TnYmXK3CcN6RjR3r_0NgdrPfbfUuD33vPwlI8e9d6Ia3B4Ci90cubMqnv6_x-GYlHOlXrPClCnheNHQTZP25vPCxiixs7rqA6eFSNZPhyU8zU81l

During an interview with NBC News last week, he trashed his predecessor for offering "weak and ineffective leadership on behalf of the United States" and argued that Obama and others "allowed [Iran] to get away with murder."

"That deal was tantamount to giving them a nuclear weapon. It was a horrible deal given by Barack Obama, and really penned by him," Trump said "It was a horrible deal."

His comments were just the latest in a series of examples of Trump trashing one of Obama's signature foreign policy accomplishments and boasting that he could do better.

And despite what Trump says, there was no "cash" involved — he's confusing the sanctions relief with a separate payment the U.S. made to settle a decades-old dispute over weapons purchased by the pre-1979 government that were never delivered to Iran.

Trump says he can get a better deal, but it's hard to see how what the plans leaked out by U.S. and Iranian sources are better than the JCPOA.

For one, the deal Trump keeps touting isn't a real deal — it's a 60-day extension of the ceasefire and a promise for more talks.

Obama's Iran deal was disastrous, Trump's is opposite

 https://www.foxnews.com/video/6398446209112

Alex Gray criticizes former President Barack Obama's Iran nuclear deal, labeling it as the worst U.S. diplomatic effort. Gray asserts the Obama administration bribed Iran with cash, putting them on a path to nuclear weapons.

Former NSC chief of staff under Trump, Alex Gray, sharply criticizes former President Barack Obama's Iran nuclear deal. Gray argues Obama's administration 'piled cash' to Iran as a 'bribe,' facilitating their nuclear ambitions and posing a global threat. He credits Donald Trump with halting this dangerous trajectory, calling Obama's recent claims about a new deal 'preposterous.'

Donald Trump’s Pallets of Cash

 https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/news/articles/trump-pallets-cash-iran

Less than three months ago Donald Trump was mocking the 2015 deal Barack Obama made with Iran that cleared the regime’s path to a nuclear bomb. “They sent Boeing 757s over there, loaded with cash, hundreds of millions of dollars,” said Trump, referring to the cash ransom Obama aides delivered directly to the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, or IRGC, to bribe the Iranians to agree to the phony deal. “That’s not going to happen with Trump.”

And yet it seems that’s exactly what’s happening with Trump. According to reports Friday, the United Arab Emirates, a key U.S. regional ally, is making $20 billion of frozen Iranian assets available to the Islamic Republic, with $3 billion of it having already been delivered to Tehran, perhaps by a Boeing 757, and maybe even on wooden pallets like those Obama stacked with cash to pay the terror state. Emirati officials deny that they’re buying off Iran on behalf of the U.S., but if Abu Dhabi thought Trump was going to put the clerical regime down for the count, they wouldn’t be giving money to a neighbor that since March has set fire to high-end real estate properties with hundreds of missile and drone attacks. Instead, the Emiratis are paying tribute to the side that looks like a winner.

Trump’s Been Out-Bluffed By Iran With A ‘Weaker’ Copy Of Obama’s Nuclear Deal | Michael Rubin

Prayer to Angels

 Rashi (Sanhedrin 44b) A person should always pray that all the heavenly beings strengthen his power of prayer – in other words that the angels should assist him in prayer and that he have no enemies in Heaven

Rashshash (Sanhedrin 44b) The gemora states a person should always pray for mercy that all heavenly beings should strengthen his power of prayer. From this we can bring support for the prayers addressed  to angels which many criticize. However perhaps this is permitted for the individual as is stated in Sotah (33a)

Sotah (33a) A man should never pray for his needs in Aramaic. For R. Johanan declared: If anyone prays for his needs in Aramaic, the Ministering Angels do not pay attention to him, because they do not understand that language!  There is no contradiction, one referring to the prayer of an individual and the other to that of a Congregation.

Shulchan Aruch (OC 

Yerushalmi (Brachos chapter 9:1) If a human is in trouble, he should cry neither to Michael nor to Gabriel, rather he should cry to Me and I shall answer him immediately 

Angels criticize G-d

Sanhedrin (44b) Rav Dimi explained as follows: At the time that the Holy One, Blessed be He, said to Ezekiel: Go say to Israel: “Your father was an Amorite and your mother a Hittite” (Ezekiel 16:3), the spirit Paskonit, which is another name for the angel Gabriel, said before the Holy One, Blessed be He: Master of the Universe, were the patriarch Abraham and the matriarch Sarah to come now and stand before You, would you speak to them in such a manner and put them to shame? Is it not stated: “Debate your cause with your neighbor, and do not reveal the secret of another”? But does the angel Gabriel have so much authority that he can reprove God in such a manner?  Yes, as Rabbi Yosei, son of Rabbi Ḥanina, says: He, the angel Gabriel, has three names: Piskon, Itmon, and Sigron. He is called Piskon because he splits [sheposek] words and argues with God on High. He is called Itmon because he conceals [she’otem] the sins of the Jewish people. And he is called Sigron because once he closes [shesoger] his arguments on behalf of the Jewish people, no one reopens the discussion. 

Iran never won a war, but never lost a negotiation

 https://www.israelhayom.com/2026/06/15/iran-never-won-a-war-but-never-lost-a-negotiation/

The deal gives the Iranian regime a lifeline from the lowest point it has reached and resources to rebuild its capabilities. Instead of forcing Tehran to sever its ties with Lebanon, it strengthens Iran's hold there. With an outcome like this, the Trump administration is making itself a laughingstock in the countries of the region.

According to reports, the memorandum of understanding offers the Iranians far more than that. It heralds the beginning of the end of the severe economic distress that sent masses of citizens into the streets in protest and fueled the internal threat to the regime's survival. Opening the Strait of Hormuz to Iranian oil exports will allow Tehran to earn millions of dollars every day. Added to that are the billions expected to flow to Iran once the memorandum of understanding enters into force and during its implementation.

Including the Lebanese front in the framework of the deal is a gift to Iran. Not only will it ensure a space of immunity for Hezbollah, the most important proxy organization from Iran's perspective, but it will also gain recognition of its status as a player in the Lebanese front. If the expectation was to dismantle Iran's hold over the proxy organizations, this agreement actually tightens it. This is happening as the administration of Gen. Joseph Aoun is singing a different tune and desperately needs to remove the suffocating patronage of the ayatollahs' regime.

And not only that. As far as is known, the deal makes no reference to the issue of ballistic missiles. Iran's progress in this field created a strategic threat not only to its neighbors and the countries of the Middle East, but also to Europe.

There is an agreement, but when and what will Iran and the US receive? | ynet explains

 https://www.ynetnews.com/article/hyctifp11fg

For now, the official text of the agreement has not been published. Iran’s deputy foreign minister clarified overnight that the text of the memorandum of understanding will be released after the official signing. Nevertheless, Iran is actively trying to present the provisions most favorable to it, and state-affiliated Iranian news agencies are continuously publishing different versions of the agreement. In Tehran, for example, it is claimed that the United States has committed, among other things, to halt sanctions on oil sales, present a reconstruction plan worth at least $300 billion, and release $24 billion in frozen funds. As noted, the full text has not been published — and there is no certainty that the memorandum of understanding indeed includes such clauses or under such conditions.

U.S. and Iran reach deal to extend ceasefire and open strait

 https://www.axios.com/2026/06/14/us-iran-ceasefire-extended-hormuz-reopen-trump

The U.S. and Iran agreed to a framework extending their ceasefire for 60 days, with a formal signing ceremony expected Friday and nuclear talks to follow.

Graham ‘concerned’ that Iran views deal with U.S. differently than Trump administration

https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/5923946-lindsey-graham-iran-deal/ 

“I am somewhat concerned that Iran’s view of the agreement seems different than what the American negotiating team is claiming,” the South Carolina Republican added.

Trump's Iran deal stirs Israeli anger

 https://www.israelhayom.com/2026/06/14/trumps-iran-deal-stirs-israeli-anger/

The US President and his advisers are convinced that without reopening the Strait of Hormuz and bringing down oil prices, the global economy will slide into recession. For this reason, Trump is approving a memorandum of understanding whose only practical significance is the reopening of the strait. All other issues will be discussed afterward. The White House has told Israeli officials that in the final agreement, if one is signed, the US will achieve all the original goals for which it went to war.

Israel is deeply unhappy with the move, but is refraining from criticism out of an understanding of the predicament in which the president finds himself. At the same time, Israel blocked an Iranian demand that it withdraw its forces from Lebanon as part of the understandings.

JCPOA 2.0: Trump's deal risks undercutting efforts against the Iranian threat - editorial

 https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-899266

It is not enough for Israeli officials to say that Trump understands Israel’s position. This is not a great deal. It is a dangerous one.

What’s worse than giving Iran $6 billion? Giving it two $6 billions.

The United States and Iran signaled last week that they were close to a deal, with reports suggesting it could be signed in Geneva this week.

Alongside those announcements came accounts of what the framework may entail: a memorandum of understanding that would open another 60-day period of technical negotiations; the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz; possible access to frozen assets; discussions over dismantling Iran’s nuclear program and disposing of enriched uranium; and broader understandings affecting Lebanon.

Furthermore, Israel has not been a party to the talks, while Israeli officials have been left to repeat that US President Donald Trump understands Israel’s concerns and conditions.

If those reports are true, Trump’s Iran framework is a disaster.

Ahead of signing, confusion swirls over Trump’s Iran deal

 https://www.ynetnews.com/article/h18ytwozmx

Trump says a framework agreement with Tehran will be signed Sunday, but major questions remain over uranium, sanctions relief, missiles and whether the deal would constrain Israel's actions against Hezbollah in Lebanon

The agreement would not formally end the conflict but would instead establish another 60-day ceasefire period during which the sides would negotiate a final accord on Iran's nuclear program and other issues.

Tehran has not yet confirmed that the agreement will be signed Sunday. However, Pakistan, which has acted as a mediator, announced that the signing would take place "digitally," meaning both sides would sign remotely without a face-to-face ceremony.

The emerging agreement has sparked concern in Israel, where officials fear it may fail to eliminate the threats posed by Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programs and could also restrict Israel's freedom of action against Hezbollah in Lebanon.