GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham said on Sunday that he thinks the US peace talks with Iran are going to fail — and that President Trump is going to seize the Strait of Hormuz “by force.”
Graham (R-SC) applauded the president for trying to negotiate with the regime, but ultimately predicted that the 14-point memorandum of understanding signed last week, ushering in a 60-day period of peace talks toward a full-fledged deal, won’t be fruitful.
“I’d rather try diplomacy than take it off the table,” the lawmaker told CBS News’ “Face the Nation” on Sunday.
“If you don’t have a diplomatic path through the MOU, then you have to go to war or some other form of coercion. Let’s try this. Let’s try a diplomatic solution. I think it’s going to fail.” he added.
Graham warned that Trump will take control of the Strait of Hormuz by force and “obliterate” Iran if the talks collapse.
“I spent four-and-a-half hours with President Trump, Friday. Here’s what I think will happen next. If this deal fails, President Trump is going to take the Strait of Hormuz over by force,” the hawkish senator explained.
“If Iran contests control of the Strait of Hormuz by the United States, we will obliterate them.”
The South Carolina senator further predicted that if Hezbollah attacks Israel, “the new policy will be, we will attack Iran.”
Trump publicly threatened to bomb the Islamic Republic on Sunday and suggested charging tolls if America has to serve as the “guardian angel” of the critical waterway, where roughly a fifth of the world’s seaborne oil supplies once flowed through annually.
The president further vowed to “hit Iran very hard” if Tehran fails to rein in its terrorist proxies from attacking Israel, alluding to Hezbollah.
In addition to taking control over the strait, Graham boldly predicted that Trump will successfully be able to get Saudi Arabia into the Abraham Accords in “calendar year 2026” and normalize relations between Riyadh and Israel.
Graham recounted how Israel and Saudi Arabia were getting close to normalizing relations until the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attacks. The senator stressed that such a feat “can’t happen until Iran’s in a box.”
“Donald Trump is going to empower me and others to jump-start … an effort to get Saudi to join Israel,” Graham went on.
“There will be accommodations made by Saudi and Israel. To Saudi and Israel, you have no better friend than Donald Trump.”
