Trump Tells Iran It Owes Americans Reparations After Tehran Sought Its Own War Payout

Here's the latest twist in the never-ending US-Iran standoff: it's basically turned into a game of "I know you are, but what am I?" over money.

Quick backstory — the US and Iran have been at war for five months now (since late February), and one of the biggest flashpoints is the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway that roughly a fifth of the world's oil and gas passes through. Iran's had it effectively shut down, which is a big reason gas prices have been elevated — something that matters a lot heading into the November midterms.

Over the weekend, Iran laid out its conditions for reopening the strait: the US has to end its naval blockade, pull troops out of the region, lift sanctions, unfreeze Iranian assets, stop threatening them, and — here's the kicker — pay compensation for what Tehran calls two "imposed wars." An Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson put it plainly, saying "It is up to the U.S. side to stop and make amends for its illegal and destructive actions."

Trump wasn't having it — or rather, he decided to flip the script. In a pair of Truth Social posts, he said "I am likewise demanding compensation from Iran, for all of the people that they have killed and gravely wounded with their roadside bombs and many conflicts." He specifically brought up the 2000 USS Cole bombing that killed 17 sailors — even though al-Qaeda claimed responsibility for that one, not Iran (a 2015 US court did separately find Iran civilly liable in that case).

He went further, saying Iran should pay "the families of the hundreds of thousands of innocent protestors that Iran has killed over the last 50 years, not to mention the 52,000 that have been killed in the last five months." He also argued Iran owes money for deaths in Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, and Gaza tied to its regional allies. Then, standing in the Oval Office during an unrelated event, he doubled down: "I said that's a good idea. Well, we're going to ask for money for the damage they've done over a 50-year period." He capped it off by saying "I have instructed my representatives to put this firmly into any and all future negotiations."

Why should you care? Two reasons. First, this is a real negotiating stumbling block — Trump's demand could complicate efforts to reach a peace agreement and reopen the Strait of Hormuz. The longer that strait stays jammed up, the longer you're likely paying more at the pump. Second, it's a preview of how brutal these negotiations could get — both sides are now essentially daring the other to blink first on money neither is likely to actually pay. As one commentator put it, Trump agreeing to pay Iran reparations is about as likely as "domestic swine take unaided to the skies." Don't expect an actual check to change hands soon — this is posturing dressed up as policy.