The Trump Administration Is Reaping What It Sowed in Iran
It’s been a whipsaw of a week in U.S.-Iran relations. Here’s what you need to know.
In retrospect, the last week in U.S.-Iran relations — in which the United States blamed Iran for attacking two tankers, Iran denied responsibility, and the leaders of both nations refused to talk with each other — was as much a foregone conclusion as it was a sudden escalation.
While Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was concluding a visit to Iran, meant in part to defuse tensions between Tehran and Washington, two tankers were attacked near the Strait of Hormuz. The U.S. was quick to lay the blame: Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said U.S. intelligence concluded that Iran “definitely” was behind the attack, and President Donald Trump emphatically told Fox & Friends, “Iran did do it.” Support from America’s allies has been mixed: While the U.K. and Saudi Arabia echoed America’s certainty that Iran was behind the attacks, Germany and France have expressed some skepticism on the subject. Meanwhile, the operator of the two tankers, a Japanese company called Kokuka Sangyo, said that the ship had been attacked by a flying object, which seemed to at least partially contradict the United States. And on Monday, Iran announced it would exceed the limits on its uranium stockpile in 10 days —…
