President Donald Trump said Monday that the U.S. ceasefire with Iran is “remained on life support” after Iran sent an “unacceptable” rebuttal to U.S. proposals to end the war.
President Trump told reporters in the Oval Office that the month-long ceasefire is “incredibly weak.”
“After reading the garbage they sent us, I would call it the weakest at this point. I couldn’t even finish reading it,” Trump said.
“You could say a cease-fire is a massive life-saving procedure. Doctors come in and say, ‘Doctor, your loved one has about a 1% chance of survival,'” he said.
The harsh ceasefire began on April 8 after President Trump threatened to destroy Iran’s “entire civilization” if a deal was not reached. It was originally scheduled to last only two weeks, but President Trump unilaterally extended it on April 21st.
The ceasefire has been volatile since its inception, with both sides accusing the other of violating its terms.
President Trump announced the ceasefire on April 7, saying the deal was contingent on Iran immediately reopening the Strait of Hormuz, a key route for global oil shipping that has been effectively shut down since the war began.
After traffic in the strait failed to return to pre-war levels, President Trump ordered a U.S. naval blockade in the Gulf of Oman to prevent ships from entering and exiting Iranian ports.
The ceasefire failed to stop all hostilities in the region. In the last week alone, Iran attacked the United Arab Emirates, the U.S. and Iran exchanged gunfire in the Strait, and the Pentagon said it collided with two Iranian-flagged oil tankers.
President Trump and U.S. officials insisted last week that the ceasefire remains in place as the administration awaits Iran’s response to a reported proposal to end the war and begin further talks over Iran’s nuclear program.
In a post on Truth Social on Sunday, President Trump said he had received Iran’s response.
“I don’t like it, I absolutely cannot accept it!” he wrote.
