Summary
- Trump red line (PBS): “No, no, not at all. Not sanctions relief, no” – unless Iran gives up its enriched uranium. “Iran negotiating on fumes,” Trump says in cabinet meeting.
- White House rejects ‘complete fabrication’ of Iranian TV reporting on MOU and draft deal status.
- IRGC keeping up the rhetoric: warns that Iran would “turn the area from Chabahar to Mahshahr into a graveyard for aggressors” if the ceasefire collapses.
- CENTCOM: “Clearly the Iranians are trying to hedge their bets here and put more pressure on the US.”
- Iranian president: “The main battleground today is the economic war.“
- Tabriz International Airport in northwestern Iran– which sustained heavy damage from airstrikes during the peak of the aerial bombings – is officially operational again, bringing restored airports to 20 reopened.
* * *
Trump Red Line
President Trump has reasserted his ‘red line’ for negotiations, centered on enriched uranium and the nuclear issue:
President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that Iran would not get sanctions relief in exchange for giving up their highly enriched uranium. His comments come as the United States and Iran try to strike a deal to end the conflict that has engulfed the Middle East for the last three months.
“No, no, not at all. Not sanctions relief, no,” Trump told PBS News during a short phone call when asked if the current deal would mean that Iran would give up their highly enriched uranium in exchange for sanctions relief.
Trump also in a televised Wednesday afternoon cabinet meeting said Iran is “intent on a deal” but that “Iran is negotiating on fumes.“
White House Rejects ‘Complete Fabrication’ Of Iran TV MOU Contents
The Trump administration has denied the morning Iranian state media reports on the contents of a current ‘Memorandum of Understanding’ (MOU) – which curiously had left out any reference whatsoever to the fate of Iran’s enriched uranium…
- WHITE HOUSE: NOBODY SHOULD BELIEVE IRAN STATE MEDIA REPORTING
- WHITE HOUSE CALLS REPORTED IRAN MOU A ‘COMPLETE FABRICATION’
An official underscored that it is a “complete fabrication” – and so it seems we are yet again back at square one, as Tehran has also said it is only engaged in ‘indirect’ contact with Washington at this point. There are further reports in US media that the Pentagon has drawn up a new target list, and has acknowledged that the Iranians have been able to better hide their missile launch sites.
Also emerging are ambiguous reports of some kind of potential explosion incident at a petrochemical complex at Asaluyeh, in Iran’s Bushehr province.
US side denounces Iranian state media reporting on current MOU draft and status:
This report from Iranian controlled media is not true and the MOU they “released” is a complete fabrication. Nobody should believe what Iranian state media is putting out. FACTS MATTER. https://t.co/agpTnBSgKu
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) May 27, 2026
Oil Dumps on MOU Headlines
As for the status of talks, the below headlines present the latest (and noticeably absent is the enriched uranium question, or release of Iranian funds). Bloomberg summarizes: “An unofficial draft of a US-Iran interim peace deal says maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz can return to normal within a month of the agreement being finalized, according to Iranian state television.
It’s unclear how recent the draft, reported by IRIB News, is or whether the US has agreed to the terms.”
- Iran’s state TV says it has a draft of the initial unofficial framework for MOU with US
- According to draft MOU US military forces will withdraw from vicinity of Iran and lift naval blockade
- Iran’s state TV says in return, Iran has committed to restoring the number of commercial transit ships through Hormuz Strait to pre-war levels within one month
- Iran’s state TV says military vessels are not included in this draft agreement
- Iran’s state TV: A final agreement will be approved as a binding UN Security Council resolution if reached in 60 days.
- The Islamabad memorandum framework is still in progress, stating no action will be taken by Iran without “tangible verification.”
- If a final deal is reached within 60 days, this agreement will be approved in the form of a binding UN Security Council resolution.
- The management and route of ship traffic through Strait of Hormuz will be handled by Iran in cooperation with Oman.
Oil dumping on the headlines:
As usual, there remains a basis for skepticism:
White House (more or less) denies accuracy of reported draft MOU with Iran.
We all should be far more skeptical of any alleged deal details disclosed. https://t.co/Umrpm3iKE6
— Caitlin Doornbos (@CaitlinDoornbos) May 27, 2026
Iran Vows ‘Graveyard For Aggressors’ amid ‘Indirect’ US Contacts
Tehran is keeping the war rhetoric cranked to a maximum, but is also conceding that a return to full-scale war with the United States and Israel is ‘unlikely’ at this stage. The Islamic Republic says at this moment only ‘indirect’ contact with Washington is happening, as cited in Bloomberg.
The IRGC is seeking to dismantle any assumption that Iran is entering peace talks from a position of tactical submission. Speaking to the semi-official Tasnim news agency, Mohammad Akbarzadeh – the political deputy of the IRGC Navy – warned that any resumption of US kinetic activity would result in catastrophic casualties for Western forces.
Akbarzadeh touted that the armed forces remain at a level of total readiness, threatening that Iran would “turn the area from Chabahar to Mahshahr into a graveyard for aggressors” if the ceasefire collapses. “Our fighters today carry in their chests the urge for hand-to-hand battle with the enemy,” Akbarzadeh declared, writing off the prospect of a renewed Western assault due to what he assessed as the “weakness” of the American-led coalition.
Pentagon: Iran ‘Hedging its Bets’ in Hormuz Strait
The Pentagon has acknowledged that Iran is ‘hedging its bets’ amid Hormuz tensions:
Former CENTCOM Commander Gen. Joseph Votel said Iran’s reported effort to lay mines in the Strait of Hormuz suggests Tehran is “hedging its bets” and attempting to ramp up pressure on the U.S. amid ongoing negotiations.
“Clearly the Iranians are trying to hedge their bets here and put more pressure on the U.S., and what we saw here was CENTCOM detecting that and then taking military action to address it very, very quickly,” Votel said during a Tuesday appearance on Fox News’ “America Reports.”
Iranian source to DropSite:
“If the U.S. cannot give the money that belongs to Iran back to Iran, and the U.S. cannot put a leash on Netanyahu and stop him from going on a rampage in Lebanon, then it shows that this conflict has not ended,” Izadi says. “This is a test for Iran to see what’s going on with the other side.”
🎥 NEW: Jeremy Scahill reported this morning that Iranian officials say the U.S. has accepted Iran’s red lines in the latest revisions to the ceasefire declaration, but is asking for time to “manage domestic public opinion” before formally announcing acceptance of the interim… pic.twitter.com/Pmovw5sEKk
— Drop Site (@DropSiteNews) May 27, 2026
Enriched Uranium Not on the Agenda
And all the while Iranian leaders have continued to make clear they will not bow to the central Trump administration demand of transferring Iran’s highly enriched uranium out of the country – though there were prior unconfirmed reports that China could be an acceptable destination for some Iranian officials.
Speaking from the sidelines of an international security conference in Moscow, Ali Bagheri Kani, deputy secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, bluntly told Fars news agency: “This issue is not on the agenda of the negotiations.”
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian in fresh remarks is signaling that the conflict has simply migrated from an air and sea war to the global financial system.
Pezeshkian: Main Battleground Now the Economic War
Meeting with the Tehran Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday, Pezeshkian urged a structural overhaul of the country’s domestic market, calling for an immediate expansion of the private sector to act as an economic shield.
“The main battleground today is the economic war,” Pezeshkian stated, according to Tasnim. “We believe the more capable, agile, and active the private sector is, the stronger the country’s economic foundation will become, and the greater our national power will be in the face of external pressures and threats.”
Pezeshkian framed the Western shift toward sanctions and capital starvation as an admission of military failure by Washington and its Israeli ally. “After failing to achieve its objectives on the military front, the enemy has focused on damaging the country’s economic resilience and disrupting the livelihoods of the people,” the president added.
Indeed this is obviously what the US naval blockade on Iranian ports aims to accomplish, which Washington continuing to bet on some kind of mass anti-regime uprising, which has yet to materialize since the start of Operation Epic Fury.
20 Damaged Airports Across Country Reopened
To demonstrate its resolve and resiliency even while Washington tries to keep the economic chokehold on, Iranian civic workers continue to rebuild logistical infrastructure at rapid pace.
As the latest example, on Wednesday the Civil Aviation Organization announced that Tabriz International Airport in northwestern Iran- which sustained heavy damage from airstrikes during the peak of the aerial bombings – is officially operational again.
“The gateway to northwest Iran”…
According to public broadcaster IRIB, domestic technical teams managed to bypass supply chain bottlenecks to restore the facility to full service. “Tabriz Airport, which was attacked during the recent war, has now been restored to activity by Iranian specialists and will reopen on Wednesday,” a spokesperson confirmed.
Tabriz joins a growing list of critical transit hubs rushing to normalize operations, according to Al Jazeera, while state media reports state that the total number of reopened airports across the country has now reached 20.
Tyler Durden
Wed, 05/27/2026 – 12:05
