Trump says US military to stay around Iran until Tehran complies with deal

WASHINGTON – US President Donald Trump said all US ships, aircraft, and military personnel would stay in place in and around Iran until it fully complied with a deal.

"All US Ships, Aircraft, and Military Personnel, with additional Ammunition, Weaponry, and anything else that is appropriate and necessary for the lethal prosecution and destruction of an already substantially degraded Enemy, will remain in place in, and around, Iran, until such time as the REAL AGREEMENT reached is fully complied with" Trump said in a post on Truth Social on Wednesday.

"If for any reason it is not, which is highly unlikely, then the Shootin Starts, bigger, and better, and stronger than anyone has ever seen before," the president added.

Iran had said earlier on Wednesday that it would be "unreasonable" to proceed with talks to forge a permanent peace deal with the United States after Israel pounded Lebanon with its heaviest strikes yet on Wednesday, killing hundreds of people.

The two sides appeared to be far apart on Iran's nuclear program, with Trump saying Iran had agreed to stop enriching uranium, and Iran's parliament speaker Mohammed Bager Qalibaf saying it was allowed to continue enriching uranium under the terms of the ceasefire.

"It was agreed, a long time ago, and despite all of the fake rhetoric to the contrary - NO NUCLEAR WEAPONS and, the Strait of Hormuz WILL BE OPEN & SAFE," Trump added in his late Wednesday's Truth Social post.