“There will be no deal with Iran except UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!,” U.S. President Donald Trump said on March 6, the seventh day of the war. “After that, and the selection of a GREAT & ACCEPTABLE Leader(s)…, we will work tirelessly to bring Iran back from the brink of destruction,” he said. On April 8, on the 40th day of the war, Mr. Trump announced a two-week ceasefire, hours after he threatened to erase the Iranian civilisation if Tehran did not accept his deal.

Mr. Trump announced not only a pause on his threatened strikes on Iran’s civilian infrastructure but a full ceasefire, and agreed to treat the Iranian proposal as “a workable basis” for future talks. Iran said it would honour the ceasefire and ensure “safe passage” of vessels through the Strait of Hormuz “in coordination with its forces”.