Man walks past banners of Iran's former supreme leader Ali Khamenei and of current supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei. (April 29, 2026)
Trump officials "surprised" at Iran’s resilience: The Atlantic
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US officials from the Donald Trump administration are "surprised" at Iran’s resilience after more than two months of constant US-‘Israeli’ strikes, according to a report from The Atlantic.
However, the officials told the US magazine that the ongoing US naval blockade of Iranian ports will apply pressure on the Islamic Republic’s economy that the leadership will not be able to withstand, citing Iran’s inability to store oil and export it.
The officials believe it might force Iran to return to negotiations, and eventually open the Strait of Hormuz, the report added.
US Vice President Vance and some Pentagon officials have privately expressed concern about the rate of munitions used by the United States during the first two months of the war.
The issue of the strait could also complicate Trump’s upcoming meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on May 14, as China is suffering due to the strait’s closure, The Atlantic added.
