Tehran and Washington are truly not just back to square one, but it's as if no rounds of dialogue - direct or indirect - have even taken place. It's more like being back at square zero - and the US President has just acknowledged it.
President Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One Friday while departing Beijing that even the very first first sentence of Iran's latest proposal was "unacceptable" and blamed the Iranians for backtracking on the nuclear issue.
The first sentence was an “unacceptable sentence, because they have fully agreed no nuclear, and if they have any nuclear of any form, I don’t read the rest,” he said, stressing that he remains unsatisfied with the "level of guarantee from them."
Trump's remarks center on his allegation that Iran agreed to give up its "nuclear dust" but then quickly “then they took it back" - but then stated his view that Tehran will eventually agree to it anyway.
"I looked at it, and I don't like the first sentence. I just throw it away," Trump said.
via Associated PressHe once again in the comments called for Iran to completely abandon any nuclear capability, insisting there can be "no nuclear of any form." He described: "You've got to get all the fuel out and no more production. You have to get everything."
Trump has said China's President Xi Jinping is in full agreement that Iran should not have a nuclear weapon:
According to Trump, Iranian representatives acknowledged only the United States and possibly China possess the specialized equipment necessary to remove radioactive debris from the damaged sites.
"They said the only one that can remove it is China or the U.S.," Trump said. "They said you were right. It is a complete obliteration."
The president has said the nuclear material is now "entombed" under ground after nuclear sites were "obliterated" - from bombing operations last June and this latest round of US-Israeli attacks in February through March and early April.
Also this week while in China Trump told Fox News in an interview that he did not underestimate the situation in Iran, despite the constantly shifting and expanding timeline and stated goals within the early weeks of Operation Epic Fury.
TRUMP TO FOX: DIDN'T UNDERESTIMATE ANYTHING ON IRAN
Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Friday that the topic of uranium enrichment "is currently not on the agenda of discussions or negotiations," but will be addressed in later stages, as cited in Tasnim.
On China and whether President Xi agreed to commit to pressuring the Iranians to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, Trump said Friday "we don’t need favors" but that "we may have to do a little cleanup work."
"We had a little month-long ceasefire, I guess you’d call it, but we have a blockade that’s so effective, that’s why we did the ceasefire," he said, after suggesting that the conflict with Iran could continue.
Tyler Durden Sat, 05/16/2026 - 08:00Just when it seemed as if the European energy landscape couldn't get any more fractured, Ankara is stepping up with a massive, off-grid proposal. Bloomberg reports Friday that Turkey has "proposed building a $1.2 billion (€1 billion) fuel pipeline for military use to help meet the energy needs of allies on NATO's eastern European flank, according to people familiar with the matter."
"Following a push by the alliance to expand its military pipeline network, Ankara is proposing that the new link be built from Turkey to Romania via Bulgaria, said the people, who spoke on condition of anonymity," the report adds.
Source: EnvatoInsiders claim the Turkish route could cost a mere one-fifth of the alternative proposals, amid several alternative routes being floated of late, specifically via Greece or Romania’s western neighbors.
Officials told Bloomberg that Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine and the escalating chaos in the Middle East - including recent supply shocks from the de facto closure of the Strait of Hormuz - have forced NATO to realize its current fuel supply model is dangerously brittle.
The timing of the quiet proposal comes ahead of the highly anticipated 2026 NATO Summit which will be held in Ankara on July 7-8. It will mark on the second time that Turkey has hosted the alliance's major annual summit.
Sources explicitly stated that this pipeline will be 100% restricted to military use. Exact capacity, flow rates, and technical specifications are being kept strictly classified, with no official statement out of Turkey's defense ministry.
More broadly, Turkey has long been seen as central to reducing Europe's dependence on Russian energy, with its Eurasian geography - and the fact that it has the second largest military in NATO - being key.
Turkish media and experts have been busy hyping Turkey's role in reshaping the alliance, including at an event this week in Washington:
The event, titled "The Turkish-American Alliance at the Heart of NATO's New Geopolitics," was organized by Türkiye's Directorate of Communications and the Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research (SETA) and moderated by Kadir Üstün, executive director of SETA in Washington.
The panel came ahead of the 2026 NATO summit scheduled for July 7-8 in Ankara, marking the second time that Türkiye will host a NATO summit following Istanbul in 2004. Communications Director Burhanettin Duran delivered a video message at the beginning of the panel. "In our 74-year journey with NATO, we have faced many challenges and difficulties. Each time, in keeping with the principle of mutual loyalty, we have managed to overcome these tests," Duran said.
He added: "With its geostrategic position, military capacity and deterrence capabilities, our country has been an indispensable central state in NATO's collective defense architecture and a geopolitical balancing factor from the Cold War to the present day."
*TURKEY SAID TO FLOAT $1.2B FUEL PIPELINE TO EASTERN NATO ALLIES
It will just cost the "eastern NATO allies" $12BN to build it
And of course, related to this and high on the agenda will be utilizing Turkey's strategic location and ability to provide alternative energy routes which increasingly cut out Russia's ability to influence Europe's energy policy.
Tyler Durden Sat, 05/16/2026 - 07:35Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,
The Telegraph has published a piece so tone-deaf it reads like self-parody. According to the outlet, the “far-right” is no longer the domain of bald men in boots and tattoos. No, it’s now being led by “strikingly telegenic young women” who dare to look good on camera while warning about mass migration, grooming gangs, and cultural replacement.
Three foreign activists – Ada Lluch, Valentina Gomez, and Eva Vlaardingerbroek – were banned from entering Britain for a Tommy Robinson rally, and the Telegraph can’t stop gushing over how “pretty” this makes the movement look.
The government has banned at least seven foreign voices from attending the rally, including the women highlighted by the Telegraph.
Not so long ago, the stock image of someone from the far-Right was easily summoned: they’d be male, obviously, and very probably bald, and questionable tattoos.
The face of the far-Right, it seems, is changing – and it’s becoming a good deal prettier ⬇️https://t.co/K8xXWHSdgK pic.twitter.com/irtXPyGD9X
Critics point out the blatant double standard: pro-Palestine marches with openly extremist rhetoric are often tolerated, while a native-focused demonstration drawing tens or hundreds of thousands draws preemptive visa blocks on speakers.
Kier Starmer’s government waves in unvetted migrants and certain extremists but draws the line at articulate critics of mass migration.
The Telegraph profiles the banned women in breathless detail. Catalan activist Ada Lluch has called out “complete invasion” of western democracies, American influencer Valentina Gomez warned about “rapist Muslims taking over,” and Dutch commentator Eva Vlaardingerbroek spoke of “the rape, replacement and murder of our people.”
All three were barred from the UK, along with several other activists. Meanwhile, the government continues to wave in the very people these women are warning about.
The Telegraph also warns about attractive home-grown women, including British influencer Saskia Teague. With over 100,000 Instagram followers, she mixes “happy happy happy” selfies with calls for “England for the English,” mass deportations, and an end to shame-free multiculturalism.
The Telegraph acts shocked that she also praises her “Anglo-Saxon hair” and rejects the idea she’s being “used” by men.
Of course the usual suspects are wheeled out to clutch pearls. Hope Not Hate researcher Alex MacKinnon calls it a “glamorisation” effort to shed the “violent thug image.” Institute for Strategic Dialogue’s Hannah Rose says looking desirable builds followers and fits the ideology that women should be “aesthetically pleasing.”
The implication is that these women can’t possibly believe what they’re saying – they must be grifting or being manipulated. Because in the eyes of the legacy media, no normal young attractive woman could possibly notice what’s happening to her country.
This is the same media that files stories on “far-right” threat while ignoring grooming gang scandals, no-go zones, and skyrocketing violence against women and girls. The Telegraph even admits the shift comes from young people “profoundly disaffected with mainstream parties” and disillusioned with modern life.
Yet instead of asking why that disillusionment exists, they obsess over Instagram filters and “zhuzhing” the image.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer has today claimed he’s all about “championing peaceful protest” while simultaneously blocking entry to those he dislikes. Starmer declared:
“I’ll always champion peaceful protest. But the Unite the Kingdom march organisers are peddling hatred and division,” then admitting that “We’ve already blocked visas for far-right agitators who want to come here to spew their extremist views.”
I’ll always champion peaceful protest. But the Unite the Kingdom march organisers are peddling hatred and division.
We’ve already blocked visas for far-right agitators who want to come here to spew their extremist views.
They don't speak for the decent, fair, respectful Britain… pic.twitter.com/hdu8kgxHFp
Why are intelligent women who take care over their appearance being maligned as ‘far right’? Well, take at look at this lot:
It’s no wonder they’re rattled. That’s the clownworld alternative the establishment promotes – and it terrifies them that normal, feminine, attractive women are rejecting it in favour of common sense.
This is also the same tired playbook the left has run for years. Remember when the likes of MSNBC insisted health and fitness was the “new gateway drug to the far-right”? Even basic self-improvement triggers the mob. Now being attractive, articulate, and female while opposing open borders gets you labelled “far-right agitator.” Apparently only frumpy, blue-haired nose ring radicals are allowed to have political opinions.
X users were not impressed with the Telegraph writer’s take.
It’s always the ugly jealous unattractive cat ladies that hates attractive women trying to stand up for their country pic.twitter.com/UqYGMEi5Hl
— Zee 🔥 (@Zeeeee_xx) May 15, 2026So, we're winning.
No longer fringe.
The norm is our way of thinking.
Rattled.
The Leftwing establishment is so accustomed to the freak show they attract that normal, feminine women are an oddity that terrifies them. 😂
— Caldron Pool (@CaldronPool) May 15, 2026Ah yes, young women couldn't possibly be concerned about the erasure of their safety, culture and freedom.
What a woeful and pathetic excuse of so-called 'journalism'.
The face of the far-right is just the Native Europeans who are sick of the ongoing conquest of our lands by 3rd World Savages, thank god that our women are waking up too & joining us in this fight 💪🏻🤍 pic.twitter.com/7ZKZ4z9jdW
— Ardan (@ArdanXXII) May 15, 2026The left’s panic is understandable. When healthy, fit, attractive people start rejecting open borders and woke insanity, the narrative collapses. Being patriotic, noticing patterns, and wanting your country to survive is not “far-right.” It’s normal.
The real extremists are the ones importing chaos, silencing dissent, and branding beauty, fitness, and common sense as threats. The more they smear, the more people wake up.
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Tyler Durden Sat, 05/16/2026 - 07:00