- 4 hours ago
US President Donald Trump has announced a five-day ceasefire, stating America will not attack Iran's power plants or energy infrastructure during this period.
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00:00Hello and welcome. Good evening. You're watching Super 6 here on India Today.
00:03I'm Akshita Nantikopal and this evening we're focusing on the big news break
00:06that's emerged of Donald Trump announcing a five-day ceasefire,
00:11saying we will not, America will not attack any of Iran's power plants.
00:16What does this mean? Is it the first sign of some sense of de-escalation
00:21in a war that's now gone on for 24 days?
00:24We're going to decode for you exactly what Trump's message means.
00:28Is this the beginning of the end, hopefully, of the West Asia war?
00:32We'll be breaking that down for you, beginning with the headlines first.
00:39After 24 days of war, Trump pauses military action for five days on Iran,
00:45claims productive talks underway to completely end hostilities in Iran.
00:56Iran contradicts Trump's claim, says U.S. spooked after Iran want to strike power grids
01:01in the region, claims Trump's remarks is to seek time for military plans
01:07and aims to decrease energy prices.
01:13But with the first sign of a true crude oil prices fall, Brent crude price currently near
01:20$100 per barrel and is expected to fall further.
01:27First reaction from Modi government after U.S. pauses strikes on Iran.
01:31MEA says watching developments closely, Prime Minister Modi earlier pitched for diplomacy
01:35and peace in West Asia.
01:43India Today continues to report from the front lines.
01:47A world-exclusive report from Lebanon as buildings come crashing down
01:51and highways are completely destroyed.
01:54Amidst that, India Today's Ashrafwani reports from war-torn Lebanon.
02:01India Today is only the channel in the world who has reached this spot.
02:05Currently, what the world is witnessing on the India Today television
02:11and you can see the impact and the destruction after this massive blasting on this main highway.
02:23The other big headline coming in from the election-bound state of Tamil Nadu
02:28where NDA seals the deal.
02:30AIA-DMK as expected gets the lion's share, set to keep over 170 seats.
02:34BJP from 20 seats goes up to 27 seats this time.
02:38AMMK gets 11 seats.
02:39The PMK reduces their quota to 18 seats.
02:57Are we finally seeing a de-escalation in the West Asia conflict?
03:02Well, Donald Trump, the US President, took to social media to suggest that there have been talks
03:06taking place the last two days between US and Iran.
03:10And here's where there seem to be signs of some sort of a talk.
03:14He calls these talks as productive, said they are good talks.
03:18And so as a result of that, America has announced that there is going to be a five-day ceasefire.
03:23What exactly does this mean?
03:25Is this a ceasefire meaning all strikes have stopped?
03:28Essentially, if you look at the post put up by Donald Trump, he says this.
03:31He says that this ceasefire is to ensure that US doesn't strike any of Iran's power grids
03:37or any of their power plants.
03:39And so that's all this five-day ceasefire is about.
03:42But it is also, let's be very clear, the first sign of some dialogue between US and Iran
03:50and that giving way to also some big takeaways.
03:53And the fact that Donald Trump has announced that you're not going to be seeing in the next five days
03:59any attack on Iran's power grids is huge.
04:03But there are big questions that also emerge on what's really playing out right now.
04:08And how much of what Trump can be said can actually be accepted?
04:13Do you take it with a big bag of salt?
04:15One hundred percent.
04:16But is this being done because there's an attempt to stabilize the US economy?
04:20There's been huge domestic pressure piling up on Donald Trump considering this war and the impact it's had on the
04:27US economy.
04:27So is this Donald Trump attempting damage control but also trying to save face?
04:32Is he seeking an exit from what's become a very, very messy West Asia war?
04:37We've been talking about how the theater of war has been expanding,
04:40which means many countries like Saudi Arabia has been putting up pressure on Washington,
04:46saying end this conflict right now because the likes of Qatar, Saudi have also paid the price.
04:51Now, is this the only way to protect the Strait of Ormuz and our vessels to go through for America?
04:58There have been endless warnings, threats from Trump.
05:00But ultimately, maybe this is the only way Trump saw any movement happening on the Strait of Ormuz,
05:07especially because you've not really had much support from other countries.
05:11But mind you, this also comes to the back of Israel going ahead and targeting some of the gas and
05:18oil fields in Iran,
05:19which didn't go down well with many countries because water prompted was a counter from Iran,
05:24which led to a whole fresh escalation in the war.
05:27Trump had backed off from that, washed us hands off, said we didn't authorize this.
05:32In fact, publicly urged for Israel to refrain from doing this.
05:35So is this now a backing off by Donald Trump after an overreach by Israel?
05:40And what I mentioned earlier, the fact that NATO and allies refused to completely come on board with Trump's plan
05:46on Iran.
05:47Did that also act as pressure as much as Trump didn't really admit it,
05:51continued to lash out at NATO and allies?
05:53Was it something that weighed on his mind that led to him now saying that,
05:57look, there's good dialogue happening with Iran?
05:59Has Trump effectively been isolated and so left with no option?
06:03Is this the best face saver that he can actually afford in this kind of a scenario?
06:08But while you've got Trump going ahead and making all of these statements,
06:11let's get you a news break coming in on how Iran has reacted.
06:20Iran's foreign ministry has said that Trump has ulterior motives suggesting that Trump has made these comments
06:27to decrease energy prices and get time for his military plans.
06:32So Iran, not convinced by what Trump has said.
06:36The Iran foreign ministry has said that the attempt here is to seek more time by Donald Trump
06:41to go ahead and figure out their next step of action, their next course of military action.
06:46And according to the Iranian foreign ministry, all of this is being done to decrease energy prices.
06:52So while on one hand you've got Trump suggesting that there's a good, productive dialogue happening with Iran,
06:58on the other Iran says, not at all the case.
07:01Whatever Trump has said, he's got ulterior motives.
07:04In such a circumstance, can we actually expect a talk and we expect a de-escalation?
07:09I want to bring in Sandeep Unitan on this broadcast.
07:11Sandeep, what do you make of what Trump has said?
07:13The fact that Iran is not convinced itself makes it sound very difficult to believe.
07:18Well, Akshita, you have to look at the timeline of this, of what we're looking at right now.
07:2348 hours ago, Trump said that he was going to attack Iranian power infrastructure and that sparked a lot of
07:30consternation.
07:32And now he said that he's not going to target Iranian oil infrastructure, power infrastructure, right?
07:37The five-day pause is interesting.
07:40That is when markets close in the United States on Friday evening.
07:45So essentially, these statements appear to be to cool the markets down.
07:49Because very clearly, Iran wants the oil prices to rise to over 200 as they've threatened.
07:55Oil prices have already climbed over $120.
07:58And you have to see the immediate impact of Trump's tweet that oil prices began falling.
08:03The markets have cooled down a bit.
08:05So I see this as a safety wall.
08:07Trump has released some pressure on the situation on Iran,
08:11saying that he's not going to target the oil infrastructure.
08:14He's not going to target the power infrastructure, energy infrastructure.
08:18That has allowed the markets to cool.
08:20And there is also a plan B in place, which is the amphibious ready group.
08:24The US is Tripoli.
08:25Amphibious ready group is already in the Indian Ocean.
08:27He believes that they will now head towards the Straits of Hormuz and give the US a chance
08:32of reopening the Straits of Hormuz.
08:34Because that is what they're really concerned about.
08:36They want to reopen the Straits of Hormuz.
08:38That hasn't happened so far.
08:4025 days of intense bombing.
08:42Two of the most powerful militaries in the world have been unable to get Iran to reopen
08:47the Straits of Hormuz.
08:48So it's all a very, very interesting power play right now, Akshita.
08:53It's, as we call it in the newsroom, tel ka khel.
08:56It's all a game of oil.
08:58It's a game of TELs, transporter erector launchers of the kind that Iran is using to fire missiles.
09:03So it's tails on both sides.
09:04So you're buying Iran's version then of suggesting that this is an attempt to decrease prices
09:09and also that it's to buy time for his military to kind of get their next course of action together.
09:15Absolutely.
09:15I don't see the United States looking for an off-ramp now when they are a bit on the defensive.
09:21They've been attacking Iran non-stop for 25 days, but they've not been able to get escalation
09:26dominance over Iran.
09:27Sure, Iran's missile salvos have been falling.
09:30They're not firing missiles in the hundreds.
09:31They're firing them in the tens or twos, but till the time that Iran retains the capability
09:37to fire missiles, till the time they ensure that the Straits of Hormuz are shut, they have
09:42leverage over the United States.
09:44And that is what the U.S. is unhappy about.
09:47Trump, Trump's and his statements, all about getting escalation dominance over Iran.
09:52But is this the best case scenario then, considering that, you know, they're not right on top like
09:56they expected in the war of narratives, as we call it.
10:00Is this the best case scenario that Trump can hope for?
10:02That he says that, look, there's been dialogue, that's why we've given you a ceasefire.
10:05Right.
10:06Well, so again, it is a pause.
10:09It's a temporary pause.
10:09I don't see this as an end to the conflict.
10:12The U.S. will not end the conflict when the terms are unfavorable to them.
10:15They will end it when terms are favorable to the United States, when they've either got
10:19Iran to ask for a ceasefire, to beg for a ceasefire or they are able to force the Straits
10:26of Hormuz open or Iran loses its missile firing capacity, which is what the U.S. believes that
10:32there is one section of school of thought which believes that Iran has already fired off 90%
10:37of all its missiles and drones.
10:39And it's just a matter of time before they run out of it, you know, altogether.
10:43So the U.S. is really playing for time.
10:46And that is what the statement really suggests.
10:48So there's a mention by Trump there.
10:50Sandeep, stay with me.
10:51But there's a mention by Trump that there's dialogue with Iran.
10:55What kind of dialogue is this?
10:56Who is this dialogue being had with?
10:58We have no details of where any sort of conversation has happened.
11:03Because so far, America and Trump, when asked about this, said too late.
11:07When asked about whether there's a possibility of really dialogue happening.
11:11So what's changed now?
11:12And is there actually conversation happening?
11:15Trump says yes.
11:16Iran says not really.
11:18But there are questions about how reliable Trump's world really is.
11:22Here's why.
11:22And I'll list out for you instances.
11:24For example, the very start of this particular war and Operation Epic Theory, as America put it,
11:30started on the premise of Iran being invited for dialogue with Jerewa.
11:34So Iran thought there are talks to ensure that exactly what's playing out now doesn't happen.
11:39But what happened?
11:40There was all a ruse.
11:40The talks were called so that all the leaders would gather in one platform.
11:45And that's what Trump used, America used, to go ahead and assassinate Ayatollah Ali Khamenei with Israel.
11:51That operation was successful because of the ruse that was formed by America suggesting talks were going to happen.
11:56And then you had also Trump saying the war is nearly over.
12:01Right after which threatened massive strikes on Iran.
12:05So again, you know, you have one version and then quite another.
12:09A 48-hour deadline was set on Saturday, which was ending at about 6 a.m. tomorrow morning.
12:15This was Donald Trump's deadline, where he said, after 48 hours, I will strike power grids in Iran.
12:20But now, as that 48-hour deadline was nearing, what has Donald Trump done?
12:25He said that, look, there's been dialogue.
12:28We'll delay this five-day ceasefire now.
12:30So again, here, a clear contradiction that's happened.
12:33He's declared death of Iran and then he speaks of diplomacy.
12:38There are multiple such questions being asked right now, considering these instances that I've given you,
12:44about whether Trump can actually be trusted when he says, look, there's going to be a ceasefire.
12:48But also, what's led to dialogue?
12:50If it actually has happened, if there has been dialogue, how did it happen now?
12:54Well, because of perhaps a lot of pressure on Donald Trump.
12:58First, maybe because of global leaders all coming in together, saying, look, we will not fight this war.
13:04Allies said this is not our war.
13:05We're not going to be dragged into a larger conflict.
13:07Other countries were putting pressure on Donald Trump, saying we're all feeling the pinch,
13:12especially with the way oil prices were surging.
13:15Second is exactly that, the surge in global oil prices
13:18and how it's prompted a whole lot of domestic and international pressure on Donald Trump.
13:24With the Strait of Ormuz and the current situation as it is completely choked,
13:28America too was struggling.
13:30The possibility number three is that Donald Trump was advised by many
13:35that this isn't a war that's going to end any time now.
13:38America's constantly tried to counter the narrative that this is not an Iraq-like situation.
13:43But the fear very much was that this would be a prolonged war because Iran wasn't backing off.
13:48The threat of the Strait of Ormuz being completely shut down.
13:52This was a serious concern.
13:54For America as much as it was for the rest of the world, including for us here in India.
13:59And for Donald Trump who constantly said we'll do what it takes to open up the Strait,
14:02he failed to do that because of the geographical advantage that Iran has.
14:07And then of course there's the rising cost of war for the US economy.
14:11And the fact that for Donald Trump, who's always said,
14:14I don't believe in a war, I don't believe in having these kind of conflicts
14:19because of the economic price that it comes at,
14:22Donald Trump is now facing all of those questions all over again.
14:26But the question that everyone is asking now, Sandeep,
14:29is yes, obviously we're taking what Trump says with a pound of salt, if you will.
14:34But having said that, do you see this as a sign of de-escalation overall in the conflict?
14:38They're 24 days on, finally you have a message that suggests, look, the war may end.
14:43Right.
14:44No, I don't see this as a sign of de-escalation.
14:46It's only Trump buying time.
14:48He's trying to, you know, get a pause on the oil prices,
14:53give the markets a respite, give them a breather,
14:55till the time he doesn't get a militarily advantageous position.
14:59But that's just a see-saw then, Sandeep.
15:01Yeah, it will continue.
15:02It will continue till the time the US does not believe
15:05that it has escalation dominance over Iran.
15:08And Iran is completely defeated, or to use Trump's words, it cries uncle.
15:15And till that time, I don't see the United States or Israel stepping back.
15:20Iran has to say, look, we can't fight anymore,
15:24we have run out of missiles, we surrender.
15:27Till that time, there's not going to be any de-escalation.
15:30And Iranians, if you see the statements that are coming out of Iran,
15:33including from Foreign Minister Aradji,
15:35are very clear that there is not going to be any surrender.
15:37They will continue fighting.
15:39They don't believe in talks.
15:40They've, in fact, even denied the prospect
15:42that there have been any kind of talks with the United States.
15:46So this is Iran taking a very hard position on all of this, on talks.
15:50They're saying that there's no question of talks.
15:52Trump possibly looking for a breather, looking for a way out,
15:55a temporary halt till he moves more significant military forces into theatre.
16:02They have no boots on the ground yet.
16:04There is talk of an 80-second airborne that could be moving in.
16:07There is two amphibious-ready groups that are moving into theatre.
16:10The USS Tripoli, of course, is closer than the USS Boxer.
16:14So all of the forces are moving in.
16:15And you could possibly look at a resumption in these attacks possibly next week after this five-day pause ends.
16:25And this five-day pause is interesting.
16:26It's not on attacks on Iran.
16:28It is only attacks on Iranian oil infrastructure, on Iranian power infrastructure,
16:34which Trump had threatened 48 hours back, Akshita.
16:37All right, Sandeep, thanks very much for joining us.
16:40You're saying this is not a hint of de-escalation, but we really hope it is,
16:43because 24 days are on.
16:45India has been feeling the pinch too.
16:46But thanks, Sandeep, for joining us.
16:48I'll just focus really on the India factor here.
16:50The fact that today, again, you saw the markets reacting very badly to what's happened.
16:55The fact that you've seen the rupees sliding against the dollar,
16:59gold, silver prices all falling.
17:01It's been bad news, one after another, for India, as it has been across the world as well.
17:07But let me also tell you about what's been happening as far as the Prime Minister's message is concerned.
17:15Prime Minister Modi addressed the nation on the West Asia war in Parliament today,
17:19and he sent across a message of peace to the world.
17:23Hours ago, Prime Minister Modi, speaking in Parliament, said India has been a voice of peace,
17:28and that the only way forward is through dialogue, through diplomacy.
17:32He also stated that war does not help humanity,
17:34and that India is pushing for an end to this conflict.
17:37But let me also highlight here the messaging as far as India's crisis as a result of this war is
17:43concerned.
17:44Prime Minister Modi is assured that coal, LNG, LPG, imports, all of it has been diversified.
17:50He said that domestic LPG is a top priority,
17:53that 60% of India's energy supplies does pass via Ormuz.
17:58But there was important messaging from Prime Minister Modi to Indians.
18:01Very clearly, he said, treat it like a COVID-like situation.
18:05Stay united, cooperate with the government.
18:07And he said, do not panic, do not hoard, very, very importantly.
18:12Here are some of those excerpts of the Prime Minister's message.
18:15Thank you, everyone.
18:22My name is, I am told, I am told, to be honest,
18:31and I will be able to raise my voice in peace and peace.
18:35My name is, I am told, I am told,
18:39and I will be able to raise my voice in peace and to be honest.
19:42So you had a message from Prime Minister Modi in Parliament today, saying that we all need to stand in
19:46one voice.
19:47Parliament needs to stand in one voice on this particular issue of how we tackle the consequences, the impact of
19:53the West Asia war.
19:54But Rahul Gandhi, leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha, has reacted to Prime Minister Modi's speech,
20:00saying the Prime Minister is compromised and that Prime Minister Modi is scared of a debate in Parliament,
20:07even on the West Asia war impact. Rahul Gandhi has said that while the Prime Minister spoke for 25 minutes
20:13in the House,
20:14if this was a debate, he wouldn't have been a part of it.
20:17Listen to what the leader of opposition said.
21:17But away from the politics.
21:19Parliament has also taken stop of it.
21:20As far as India is concerned, there's been no shortage of supply.
21:24We've kept the supply lines going.
21:26Most people, yes, there have been inconveniences.
21:29You know, we're not going to suggest that everything's a rosy, perfect picture.
21:32But having said that, those inconveniences, when you compare to what other countries have been going through, has been under
21:37control.
21:38America, you've been seeing essentially 90-day supply limits that's been mandated by energy agencies domestically in the US,
21:46keeping in mind that this could be a prolonged war.
21:48As far as India is concerned, Prime Minister Modi has highlighted that we have adequate energy reserves,
21:5474-plus days of energy reserves.
21:57And the Prime Minister has put the focus also on Atmanir Bharta, saying very clearly,
22:02we're ensuring we're self-reliant as far as these energy reserves are concerned.
22:07Let's take you through some other countries as well and what the situation is.
22:11In the UK, fuel, gas prices, all of that has risen sharply as a result of what's happening globally.
22:17In India so far, there's been no fuel price hike.
22:20Premium petrol, yes, has gone up.
22:23But regular petrol, regular diesel, the price is very much under control.
22:27Prime Minister Modi today again highlighted that there's no question of fuel prices going up
22:31because there is no shortage, and I'll reiterate this, no shortage of oil supply right now in the country.
22:37In Germany, coal has been restarted because gas prices have surged.
22:42And this is something the German government has also spoken of.
22:45As far as India is concerned, we've pushed rather for a P&G industry shift.
22:50And this is what Prime Minister Modi has spoken of,
22:53that we need to become self-reliant as far as these energy sources are concerned.
22:58Canada, there's been global oil tanker panic and the fact that tankers haven't been reaching them at all.
23:04India's diversified, essentially.
23:07Uninterrupted supply has been ensured. How?
23:09By diversifying our imports as well and ensuring we're not overly reliant on one or two countries
23:14or one or two regions or pockets, keeping in mind the conflict and how it's playing out.
23:26Okay, let's get to more breaking news that's coming in.
23:29Even as Trump has spoken of a five-day ceasefire,
23:33Trump has spoken to U.S. media and has said that it was Iran that's been desperate for conversation,
23:39that it's Iran that was desperate for dialogue,
23:41and that Iran wants to end this war badly.
23:45He says that a deal with Iran could be within the next five days.
23:50Remember that a five-day ceasefire has been called,
23:52and Trump suggests that in those five days, if conversation, if dialogue continues,
23:57there is a possibility that you could see the war coming to an end very, very soon.
24:03Donald Trump, the administration has been constantly saying this is not a prolonged war,
24:07this is not an endless war like in Iraq, like what happened in Afghanistan or any of those.
24:12They seem to suggest that this will get over very soon.
24:15And Donald Trump, in an attempt, of course, to control narratives,
24:19has maintained very clearly that at this point, Iran wants to badly have a conversation,
24:25Iran wants dialogue, and Iran desperately wants to end the war.
24:29What's the truth? What's going to happen in the next few days?
24:31We don't know, but like I said, we certainly, certainly hope
24:35that this is the first sign of de-escalation of this war that's gone on for 24 days.
24:41That's all we have time for in this edition of Super 6.
24:43Thanks very much for tuning in.
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