Trump asks Iran 'to get smart soon' over halted talks, asserts he is 'no more Mr Nice Guy'

Iran was once again at the centre of US President Donald Trump’s fury as the latter warned Tehran to “get smart soon” as talks between the two sides over a peace deal amid a conflict have largely stalled.

In a post on his Truth Social platform, the American leader said, “Iran can’t get their act together.”

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“They don’t know how to sign a nonnuclear deal. They better get smart soon!”

The mercurial Trump also included a photo, an AI-generated one, of himself holding an assault rifle, with blasts on a mountainside behind. “NO MORE MR. NICE GUY!” read a banner over the image.

It was only less than 24 hours before that Trump stated that Iran “informed us that they are in a ‘State of Collapse’” and requested the US Navy to open the Strait of Hormuz “as soon as possible”.

Trump, however, did not share details on who from Tehran conveyed such information to him.

Trump's threats amid fragile US-Iran ceasefire

The president’s renewed threats emerged amid increasing uncertainty regarding the delicate US-Iran ceasefire, just days after he scrapped the most recent round of discussions with Tehran.

Israel and the US launched air attacks on Iran on February 28, decimating its top leadership, mainly to get rid of Tehran’s nuclear programme, weaken its regional influence and cause regime change.

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The US Navy recently enforced a blockade on Iranian ports for over two weeks, preventing certain vessels from accessing the crucial oil-transporting waterway during this period. Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps first limited shipping in the strait as a reaction to the initial series of strikes by Jerusalem and Washington DC.

The closure has significantly harmed the oil sector and caused gas prices in the US to rise above $4 per gallon for the first time since 2022.

'Both sides trying to signal'

Speaking with Al Jazeera, Rob Geist Pinfold, a lecturer specialising in international security at King’s College London, said “we have moved beyond the phase ... for a physical war”, yet both Tehran and Washington are currently engaged in a period of “intense competition”.

“Both sides are basically trying to signal to the other that they have more resilience, that time is on their side,” he was quoted as saying by the news outlet.

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Over the weekend, Trump opted not to send special envoy Steve Witkoff and his son-in-law Jared Kushner to Pakistan for a second round of peace negotiations with Iranian officials. Officials from Tehran had also refused to engage directly with the American delegation.

On Monday (April 27), the president convened with his national security team, while Secretary of State Marco Rubio criticised Iran's recent proposal regarding the conclusion of the war on the same day. The plan would involve the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz but does not provide any concessions concerning Tehran's nuclear programme, a US media report said.