President Donald Trump claims the Iranian government has gifted him eight fully-laden oil tankers that were allowed to pass through the Strait of Hormuz under a Pakistani flag this week as a good-faith gesture in talks to end the war he started nearly four weeks ago.
The bizarre revelation came after he was asked about comments he’d made two days ago, during a swearing-in ceremony for newly-minuted Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin. The cryptic remark indicated that he’d received a “present” from Tehran during ceasefire negotiations.
Speaking during a marathon cabinet meeting on Thursday, Trump revealed the alleged gift when asked to explain what he’d meant by the “present” earlier in the week.
He told reporters that Iran had offered the precious cargo as part of the ongoing indirect talks that are currently being facilitated by Islamabad after he was asked about his prior claim.
“They said to show you the fact that we’re real and solid, and we’re going to let you have eight boats of oil, eight boats, eight big boats of oil. This was two days ago, and they’ll sail up tomorrow,” he said.
Trump said he hadn’t thought much about the offer for the three subsequent days until he saw a report on Fox News about eight tankers being allowed to pass through the strait.
“And I said, ‘well, I guess, I guess they were right,’ and they were, real, and I think they were Pakistani flagged. And I said, ‘well, I guess we’re dealing with the right people,” he said.
The president added that Tehran “apologies for something they said” and offered two more tankers, for a total of ten fully-laden ships.
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