In a brazen assessment of ongoing U.S.-Iran negotiations, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander Ahmad Vahidi has told senior Iranian leaders that President Trump is effectively “tamed.” According to Israel’s Channel 14, Vahidi asserted that “We got what we wanted. As always, the naïve West believes it will get something in return, which, of course, will never happen.” The claim underscores a widening gap between Washington’s diplomatic ambitions and Tehran’s intransigence.
When asked Wednesday if he was preparing for all-out war, Trump responded, “I think they’re fine,” referring to Iran. But the reality is more fraught. Talks in Doha remain indirect and ineffectual, despite Trump’s boast on Truth Social that “IRAN HAS REQUESTED A MEETING. IT WILL TAKE PLACE TOMORROW IN DOHA!”
Iran’s parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, has taken a hard line, insisting that negotiations on a final end to the war cannot proceed until multiple clauses of the Memorandum of Understanding with the Trump administration are fully implemented. From Tehran’s perspective, that means a complete end to U.S. hostilities, no American interference in the Strait of Hormuz, joint Iranian-Omani control of that strategic waterway, U.S. oil waivers, and the release of frozen Iranian assets.
Iran believes Trump is capitulating to lower U.S. gas prices, given Tehran’s leverage over the Strait of Hormuz. Ghalibaf is following Vahidi’s orders: “Don’t give in on anything. Threaten. And if necessary, walk away from the negotiations.” On day 15 of the 60-day ceasefire talks, Tehran feels it holds the upper hand, while the White House chases its tail in Doha. As the Senate reversed course on Iran war powers, the administration’s strategy appears increasingly adrift.
Vahidi has made clear that “Any violation, no matter how small, will allow us to threaten to close the Strait of Hormuz, and Trump and his people will accept anything.” While negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner may want a deal, Iran’s Assembly of Experts and hardliners in the IRGC will not permit it on Washington’s terms. As reported by Iran International, Trump’s negotiators are merely empowering hardliners, who rebuked Ghalibaf for giving too much away in earlier talks and reminded him that crossing Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei’s red lines was “not permissible under any circumstances.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio sees through the charade. In Bahrain, he stated that “The Iranian system is led by clerics, radical clerics. That’s what it’s always been led by.” Trump’s two red lines—no nuclear weapons and keeping the Strait of Hormuz open—are at risk. His priority on the strait is enabling Iran’s stonewalling. Limited U.S. retaliatory strikes for Iranian ceasefire violations have not changed the calculus. According to the Wall Street Journal, Trump has told aides he is fine with extending talks beyond the 60-day deadline and is satisfied with one-off strikes when Iran violates terms.
Vahidi is equally comfortable with those strikes. They do not threaten the regime, help keep Trump “tamed,” and buy time to avoid discussing nuclear weapons while saving Hezbollah in Lebanon. Last Friday, Lebanon, Israel, and the U.S. signed a trilateral framework aimed at disarming Hezbollah, which the Jerusalem Post described as “outlin[ing] a structured process for disarming Hezbollah.” Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem rejected the framework as “humiliating, shameful and a surrender of sovereignty.”
The lesson is clear: a peace deal with Iran is impossible as long as the IRGC and its radical clerics hold power. Diplomacy has limits, and Trump’s forever cease-fire only plays into their hands. As Trump pressures gas stations over prices, the administration must recognize that Iran only understands brute force. It is past time to permanently tame Vahidi and his hardliners.
