Trump promises a deal to end the conflict in Iran is close, this is the 39th time he’s made such a claim

Donald Trump has once again claimed that the U.S. is nearing a deal to end the conflict with Iran. The president canceled planned strikes on the country after stating that negotiators had made a settlement with Iran. 

The president insisted that U.S. negotiators are close to finalizing a deal, telling reporters on Thursday that they had “just made a great settlement,” as per BBC News. Trump claimed that the deal was “subject to finalisation of documents, which should get done, over the next few days.”

Trump’s claims have been disputed by Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei who said that the reports of an agreement had been “speculative” and that “nothing has been finalised.” The two conflicting sides of the argument have raised questions over how close the U.S. really is to obtaining peace in Iran.

Donald Trump has made similar claims before

This isn’t the first time that the U.S. president has said a deal to end the conflict was right around the corner but so far a deal has not been reached. In May Trump’s peace deal collapsed despite it looking like an agreement was close the previous weekend. Earlier in June Trump claimed he didn’t care if peace talks with Iran were over, suggesting that diplomacy between the two countries was at a low.

According to CBS News the Iranian Tasnim news agency stated that Trump had previously claimed that a deal was imminent 38 times in the past two months. This latest statement would presumably bring the total up to 39 now.

The latest potential peace deal comes more than three months after the conflict started. On February 28 the U.S. and Israel launched joint strikes on Iran. The country responded by launching strikes against Israel and other U.S.-allied states and closing the Strait of Hormuz. Since then the U.S. and Iran have come close to making a peace deal numerous times but so far peace hasn’t been reached.

The conditions of the deal are conflicting

On Friday a senior US administration official laid out the points of the deal which would apparently see the Strait of Hormuz reopened, dismantling of Iran’s nuclear program, and relief for “economic pressures” Iran has been under according to CNN. However, a conflicting explanation came from a diplomatic source that told CNN the deal would open talks on Iran’s nuclear program, not dismantle it.

Trump decried the Iranian media, labeling Tehran as “dishonorable.” He disputed what he said were inaccurate “state media descriptions” of the deal.

Despite the conflicting sides of the argument, sources say a signing ceremony could be held in Geneva as early as Sunday.