Iran adviser says Tehran’s power forced Trump to seek Hormuz deal

Ali Akbar Velayati, an adviser to Mojtaba Khamenei, said Iran’s expanding influence has altered the regional balance of power and compelled Donald Trump to pursue a temporary agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

In a post on X, Velayati wrote: "The nightmare that Western strategists have feared for years has come true: Iran is strengthening, and the strategic map is being redrawn."

He said that Reuters and The Guardian had acknowledged that Trump needed a temporary arrangement to reopen the key shipping route. Velayati described the situation as “the collapse of the Iran pressure doctrine” and “a victory of the axis of resistance.”

Velayati also cautioned regional countries against what he called the “illusion of appeasement,” arguing that the evolving balance of power would not be built on weakening Iran-aligned groups.

“Diplomatic delusions exact heavy costs — lasting peace blossoms within a balance of power; not in the shadow of baseless commitments,” he wrote.

By Tamilla Hasanova