WASHINGTON, April 10. /TASS/. Attempts by the US and Israel to continue to exert pressure on Iran could lead to the collapse of the entire global economy, American political scientist and University of Chicago professor John Mearsheimer warned.
"They (Iran - TASS) hold almost all the cards. They are in a really powerful position. By cutting off traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, they're in a position to tank the global economy. <…> The leverage that they have is enormous, the consequences of what's happened so far for the international economy are going to be devastating," the expert said about the Iranian leadership at a conference convened by the Arab center in Washington.
"We (the United States - TASS) are playing a losing hand, and the consequences of continuing to play that hand are that the global economy will go off a cliff," Mischeymer believes.
In his view, Washington has no place to go on the "escalation ladder."
"So, the basic problem that President Trump faces, this isn't a basic problem he faces, is he can't go up the escalation ladder, because the Iranians can beat him on every row, because they have controlled the Strait of Hormuz, and they have the ability to wreck the GCC countries (Gulf Cooperation countries - TASS), and, by the way, do enormous damage to Israel as well. There's a good reason that the Israelis are going to enormous lengths not to let us know what's happening inside their society in terms of hits from missiles, both ballistic missiles and proof missiles," the expert said.
On April 7, US President Donald Trump announced a two-week mutual ceasefire with Iran. According to him, the parties have resolved nearly all contentious issues, and Washington views Tehran’s 10-point proposal as a working basis for further negotiations. Trump stated that the decision was made based on Iran’s willingness to open the Strait of Hormuz. In turn, Tehran agreed to cease "defensive attacks" provided that no strikes are launched against Iran. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who is mediating between the parties, invited them to negotiate on April 10. According to the Iranian public broadcaster, the talks are expected to be face-to-face.
Meantime, a source familiar with the matter told TASS that talks between the US and Iran in the Pakistani capital of Islamabad will begin on Saturday and are expected to last several days.