larry johnson believes that iran will last long enough to defeat the empire, a surprise to the trump; 

 

Despite bold claims from Donald Trump and his Secretary of War that Iran has lost the war and is on the cusp of surrendering, Iran has not got the memo and continues an unrelenting wave of a drone and missile attacks on US targets in the Persian Gulf and on targets throughout Israel. During an interview with CBS News, Donald Trump stated that the “military operation” against Iran is actually completed. He said:

I think the war, by and large, is over. They [the Iranian side] have no fleet, no communications, no aviation left.

In private, however, Trump’s advisers have urged him privately to look for an exit plan from the Iran war amid spiking oil prices and concerns that a prolonged conflict could spark political backlash, according to WSJ. Officials close to the president are urging him to start outlining an exit strategy from the conflict while portraying the military campaign as having largely achieved its goals. Discussions in Washington are increasingly focused on declaring success and shifting toward a controlled withdrawal before the economic and political costs rise further.

I think this explains why President Trump called Vladimir Putin. The Kremlin has provided a readout of a recent phone call between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin that occurred on March 9, 2026 (Monday) and lasted about one hour. It was described by Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov as “frank,” “businesslike,” “constructive,” and “serious.” The conversation was initiated by Trump. The primary focus of the call was the US and Israeli war with Iran, with Putin sharing proposals for a “quick political and diplomatic settlement.” This included references to his prior contacts with Gulf state leaders, Iran’s president, and others............more.........