How Trump forced himself to pay billions to Iran in peace deal

Added: 2026-05-28

[00:00:00]There's a simple way of describing the deal Donald Trump may strike with Iran.

[00:00:04]Suppose years ago you paid somebody to give up sugar and they did. Then you broke the deal and stopped paying. So they went back to their old habit and for the first time they also filled up a huge jar of sugar. Now to get rid of that jar and stop them eating sugar, you have to pay them $12 billion. That's more or less the bargain Trump is trying to reach with Iran. Back in 2015, America promised to lift sanctions and release Iranian assets in a nuclear agreement that banned Iran from producing highlyenriched uranium. Then Trump in his first term pulled America out of that agreement.

[00:00:43]>> The Iran deal is defective at its core >> and reimposed the sanctions whereupon Iran produced a whole 440 kg stockpile of highlyenriched uranium. Now, Trump wants Iran to destroy that stockpile in a deal to end the war. And Iran's reply is that'll cost you $12 billion dollar of frozen assets. If he gives way, Trump will be paying the Iranian regime to get rid of something that the original deal prevented. He would doubtless claim credit for getting rid of the stockpile.

[00:01:16]But would he deserve it? about as much as he would deserve credit for Iran reopening the straight of form which was only closed in the first place because he and Benjamin Netanyahu started the war. Trump's diplomacy is now designed to solve problems that he himself created.