US hopeful for a comprehensive peace deal with Iran, Witkoff says

“Iran just had a war. They fought it bravely,” Trump said Wednesday on the sidelines of the NATO summit.

“I’m not giving up (on the maximum pressure policy). I could stop their oil business if I wanted. (But) I don’t want to do that," he said when asked if he is easing sanctions on Iran.

"They’re going to need money to put that country back to shape. We want to see that happen. We’re not taking over the oil. We could have. But putting that country back into shape desperately needs money."

The remarks mark a notable shift in tone. Just weeks earlier, in early May, Trump had threatened to impose immediate secondary sanctions on any country buying “even small amounts of oil or petrochemicals from Iran.”

That warning was part of his administration’s revived maximum pressure campaign, reintroduced this February after a pause under the Biden administration.

On Tuesday, Trump appeared to soften his stance, posting on Truth Social: “China can now continue to purchase Oil from Iran.”

The post drew immediate speculation about a possible rollback of sanctions.

However, the Wall Street Journal cited a senior White House official as saying Trump was “simply calling attention to the fact that, because of his decisive actions to obliterate Iran’s nuclear facilities and broker a ceasefire between Israel and Iran, the Strait of Hormuz will not be impacted, which would have been devastating for China.”

The official was quoted as saying that US sanctions on countries importing Iranian oil remain fully in effect.

In his Wednesday remarks, Trump did not clarify whether he plans to formally issue a sanctions waiver or simply return to what critics described as lax enforcement of US sanctions during the Biden era.

'Uncanny ability'

Trump's Mideast envoy for talks with Iran which are due to resume next week said the move is a sign of Trump's diplomatic prowess.

"It was a signal from the President, you know, he's got this uncanny ability to take the temperature of how people are feeling about certain things," he told Fox News.

"This was a signal to the Chinese that we want to work with you, that we're not interested in hurting your economy, we're interested in in working together with you in unison, and hopefully that becomes a signal to the Iranians," he added.

During Trump’s first term, strict sanctions enforcement had nearly eliminated Iran’s legal oil exports, bringing them down to 200,000 barrels per day. Under the Biden administration, the enforcement of sanctions eased, and exports to China surged — peaking at 1.7 million barrels per day in early 2025.

China is Iran’s primary oil customer, reportedly buying around 90 percent of its exports, according to Reuters.

Iranian crude is often shipped in shadow fleets that mask the origin of the oil before it arrives at China’s independent “teapot” refineries. These facilities frequently pay in Chinese yuan, bypassing the US dollar-based global financial system.

Eyewitnesses reported to Iran International hearing what sounded like air defense activities in various cities throughout Iran as a truce with Israel enters its third day on Thursday local time.

The cities included Anzali in the North, Ahvaz in the South, Parand near Tehran and the reported activity was especially pronounced in Rasht near the Caspian Sea.

"Iran’s highly enriched uranium could be moved in as little as 10 carloads," Democratic Senator Mark Warner of Virginia wrote on X.

"Do we really have confidence we know where this is? Do we really have confidence it wasn’t moved before our strikes?"

Ambassador Ali Mousavi was attending a meeting of the UK Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee on the Iran-Israel conflict on June 17, where MPs grilled him over what they called Tehran-backed plots against dissident Iranian journalists in Britain.

“These issues are some allegations against and blaming my country,” he said according to an official transcript. “We have some criticism regarding BBC Persian’s activities. They are intervening in Iranian domestic affairs.”

Pressed by MP John Whittingdale on more than 20 plots cited by MI5 targeting exiled Iranian journalists, Mousavi denied Iranian involvement and pushed for bilateral security discussions instead.

“If you have any evidence, please submit it, and we will consider it,” he said.

Mousavi said Tehran was ready to co-operate with British agencies but deflected on specific allegations.

In the meeting with Mousavi, MP Whittingdale said he had visited the headquarters of Iran International "whose journalists have been subjected to threats from Iran on a daily basis."

The lawmaker, who leads the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Media Freedom, also cited constant harassment of the families of BBC Persian journalists in Iran.

Mousavi appeared before the UK parliament a few days before the family of an Iran International presenter was detained in Tehran in what the Persian-language broadcaster called an attempt to coerce her resignation.

“This deeply reprehensible tactic marks a dangerous escalation,” Iran International said.

Earlier this month, the BBC also accused Iran of intensifying its harassment of BBC Persian journalists by threatening their families inside Iran. The broadcaster described the actions as “a sharp and deeply troubling escalation” of its long-running campaign of intimidation.

RSF urges global action

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) on Wednesday called for global action over what it described as Iran’s escalating use of transnational repression, which appears to have intensified in response to the uncensored coverage of the Israel-Iran conflict.

In a statement, the RSF said it has documented the targeting of hundreds of Iranian diaspora journalists abroad, warning that these actions form part of a broader strategy by Iranian authorities to suppress dissent and restrict press freedom beyond their borders.

In March, the UK government decided to place the Islamic Republic’s intelligence and security establishment on the highest tier of its foreign influence watchlist following threats to Iranian journalists over the past three years.

Under the designation, Iran and anybody acting on its behalf would be deemed a potential security threat and compelled to register their activities in the UK. Not doing so would potentially incur a five-year prison sentence.

Israel's Joint Chief of Staff, General Eyal Zamir, said on Wednesday there had been "systemic" damage to Iran's nuclear program.

“Based on the assessment of senior officials in the Military Intelligence Directorate, the damage to the nuclear program is not a pinpoint strike but a systemic one,” General Zamir added. “We will not allow Iran to produce weapons of mass destruction.”