{"id":22517,"date":"2026-03-01T22:14:20","date_gmt":"2026-03-01T22:14:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/22517\/"},"modified":"2026-03-01T22:14:20","modified_gmt":"2026-03-01T22:14:20","slug":"iran-pushes-back-against-trump-ahead-of-geneva-talks-over-tehrans-nuclear-program-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/22517\/","title":{"rendered":"Iran pushes back against Trump ahead of Geneva talks over Tehran\u2019s nuclear program"},"content":{"rendered":"

Iran pushed back Wednesday against U.S. President Donald Trump\u2019s pressure tactics<\/a> ahead of critical talks in Geneva over Tehran\u2019s nuclear program<\/a>, alternating between calling his remarks \u201cbig lies\u201d to saying negotiations may yield an agreement through \u201chonorable diplomacy.\u201d<\/p>\n

The remarks by two Iranian officials ahead of Thursday\u2019s talks come as America has assembled its biggest deployment of aircraft and warships to the Middle East in decades<\/a>, part of Trump\u2019s efforts to get a deal while Iran struggles at home with growing dissent following nationwide protests last month.<\/p>\n

If the negotiations fail, Trump repeatedly has threatened to attack Iran \u2014 something Mideast nations fear could spiral into a new regional war.<\/p>\n

Here’s the latest:<\/p>\n

Rubio says US is looking into Cuban shootout, will \u2018respond appropriately\u2019<\/p>\n

Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters late Wednesday that he was made aware of the incident with Cuban soldiers and that the U.S. is now gathering its own information to determine if the victims were American citizens or permanent residents.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have various different elements of the U.S. government that are trying to identify elements of the story that may not be provided to us now,\u201d Rubio said at the airport in Basseterre, St. Kitts.<\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s top diplomat refused to speculate on what happened, saying that its could be a \u201cwide range of things,\u201d and that the U.S. will not solely rely on what the Cuban authorities have provided thus far.<\/p>\n

\u201cSuffice it to say, it is highly unusual to see shootouts in open sea like that. It\u2019s not something that happens every day,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Water utility making \u2018huge progress\u2019 in repairing pipe after massive Potomac River sewage spill<\/p>\n

The utility DC Water is on track to fully repair a collapsed sewer line in Maryland by mid-March, spokesperson Sherri Lewis said during a call with reporters. She says crews are making \u201chuge strides.\u201d<\/p>\n

A portion of the Potomac Interceptor line ruptured in January, sending roughly 250 million gallons of raw sewage<\/a> into the Potomac River just north of Washington, D.C. Lewis said there have been no overflows into the river since Feb. 8. Crews are now excavating a rock and debris dam that formed in the damaged area before spraying a concrete-like geopolymer application that Lewis said was essential to repairing the line.<\/p>\n

President Donald Trump has repeatedly criticized local Democratic leaders<\/a> over the spill, blaming \u201cgross mismanagement.\u201d<\/p>\n

DC Water operates the sewage system and is regulated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.<\/p>\n

Last week, Trump approved the District of Columbia\u2019s request<\/a> for an emergency declaration<\/a>, which authorizes the Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate potential assistance by federal agencies.<\/p>\n

EPA administrator Lee Zeldin visited the site Wednesday, Lewis said, a day after Interior Secretary Doug Burgum. The spill occurred on land operated by the National Park Service.<\/p>\n

Florida officials respond to Cuba boat attack<\/p>\n

Florida\u2019s attorney general said Wednesday he has ordered state prosecutors to work with federal law enforcement to investigate Cuba\u2019s deadly attack on a Florida-registered speed boat in Cuban waters.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Cuban government cannot be trusted, and we will do everything in our power to hold these communists accountable,\u201d Attorney General James Uthmeier wrote on the social media platform X.<\/p>\n

U.S. Rep. Carlos Gim\u00e9nez, a Miami Republican and the only current Cuban-born member of Congress, decried the killings and accused the Cuban government of murder.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe regime in Cuba must be relegated to the dustbin of history for its countless crimes against humanity,\u201d he said in a statement.<\/p>\n

VP offers initial reaction to reports that Cuban soldiers killed people aboard Florida-registered speedboat<\/p>\n

Vance said late Wednesday afternoon that he had been briefed on the incident by Secretary of State Marco Rubio. He added that the White House was monitoring the situation, but declined to provide further details.<\/p>\n

\u201cHopefully, it\u2019s not as bad as we fear it could be,\u201d Vance said.<\/p>\n

Cuba\u2019s government said earlier Wednesday that its soldiers killed four people aboard a speed boat registered in Florida that opened fire on officers in Cuban waters.<\/p>\n

Cuba\u2019s Interior Ministry issued a statement that provided few details about the shooting, but noted that the boat was roughly 1 mile (1.6 kilometers) northeast of Cayo Falcones, off Cuba\u2019s north coast.<\/p>\n

It was unclear if any U.S. citizens were aboard.<\/p>\n

Vance says halt in Medicaid funding in Minnesota to ensure \u2018it takes its obligations seriously\u2019<\/p>\n

Vance made his announcement about halting Medicaid funding in Minnesota alongside Dr. Mehmet Oz, the administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.<\/p>\n

Vance said the administration was taking the action \u201cin order to ensure that the state of Minnesota takes its obligations seriously to be good stewards of the American people\u2019s tax money.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wednesday\u2019s move is part of a larger Trump administration effort to spotlight fraud around the country. That effort comes after allegations of fraud<\/a> involving day care centers run by Somali residents in Minneapolis prompted a massive immigration crackdown in the Midwestern city, resulting in widespread protests.<\/p>\n

Rubio defends raid to capture Maduro to Caribbean leaders<\/p>\n

Secretary of State Marco Rubio brushed aside concerns about the legality of Nicol\u00e1s Maduro\u2019s capture last month that have been raised among Venezuela\u2019s island-state neighbors.<\/p>\n

\u201cIrrespective of how some of you may have individually felt about our operations and our policy toward Venezuela, I will tell you this, and I will tell you this without any apology or without any apprehension: Venezuela is better off today than it was eight weeks ago,\u201d Rubio said, according to a transcript of his remarks later distributed by the State Department.<\/p>\n

He spoke to leaders from the 15-member Caribbean Community bloc in the country of St. Kitts and Nevis in a closed-door meeting Wednesday.<\/p>\n

Rubio said interim authorities in the South American country have made \u201csubstantial\u201d progress in improving conditions by doing \u201cthings that eight or nine weeks ago would have been unimaginable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Vance says administration is pausing some Medicaid funding to Minnesota because of fraud concerns<\/p>\n

Vice President JD Vance announced Wednesday that the Trump administration would \u201ctemporarily halt\u201d some Medicaid funding to the state of Minnesota over fraud concerns, as part of what he described as an aggressive crackdown on misuse of public funds.<\/p>\n

Medicaid is the U.S. health care safety net for low-income Americans. As of late 2025, nearly 70 million people were enrolled nationwide.<\/p>\n

\u25b6 Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

Democrats double down on decision not to stand during Trump\u2019s speech<\/p>\n

Asked whether it was wrong for Democrats not to stand when Trump asked during his State of the Union for members to stand if they believed the government\u2019s first duty should be protecting U.S. citizens, members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus doubled down on the decision not to.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo sort of play that out so that it could be theater for America was disingenuous, at the very least,\u201d said Rep. Adriano Espaillat, chair of the caucus. \u201cOur country doesn\u2019t need more division than it has.\u201d<\/p>\n

Oregon Rep. Andrea Salinas said she was \u201cpissed\u201d when Trump made the comment, saying Democrats have been trying to protect American citizens.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, we should be protecting American citizens, but instead, they\u2019re killing them on the streets of Minneapolis,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar wants to know why her State of the Union guest was arrested<\/p>\n

Omar said Aliya Rahman of Minneapolis briefly stood in silence during Trump\u2019s speech, along with other guests but was forcibly removed, despite warning officers about injured shoulders. Rahman was taken to the hospital for treatment and later charged with unlawful conduct, disruption of Congress<\/p>\n

\u201cThe heavy-handed response to a peaceful guest sends a chilling message about the state of our democracy,\u201d Omar said in a statement.<\/p>\n

In a guest announcement, Omar described Rahman as a Bangladeshi-American software engineer and a disabled person with autism and a traumatic brain injury, who was driving to a doctor\u2019s appointment on Jan. 13 when she was forcibly removed from her vehicle by Homeland Security agents. Omar\u2019s office said Rahman experienced severe medical neglect and violence at the hands of ICE agents, requiring hospitalization.<\/p>\n

Capitol Polices said State of the Union tickets explain that demonstrating is prohibited.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe guest was told to sit down, but refused to obey our lawful orders,\u201d police said.<\/p>\n

House Democrats say the \u2018sprint to November\u2019 midterms is on<\/p>\n

Democrats are very confident about their chances of flipping the House in November. And now that the State of the Union has passed, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said Wednesday that \u201cit\u2019s going to be a sprint to November 3rd.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHouse Democrats are on the verge of a takeover,\u201d Jeffries said.<\/p>\n

Democrats have relished their role as the opposition party. Rep. Ted Lieu said at the Wednesday press conference that Democrats are \u201cthe most effective minority party in U.S. history.\u201d<\/p>\n

But questions linger about what vision the party will actually provide if they win back either chamber in November. Leaders say it will become more clear in the coming days, as House Democrats huddle in Virginia to meet with labor leaders, policy experts and other elected officials to outline their agenda going forward.<\/p>\n

Democratic Leader Jeffries calls Trump\u2019s SOTU a \u2018disgraceful performance\u2019<\/p>\n

House Democratic leadership kicked off a policy conference in Virginia by criticizing Trump\u2019s State of the Union the night prior, saying it was filled with lies and a lack of vision.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was a disgraceful performance. Donald Trump hit a new low,\u201d said House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries. He added that \u201cthere was no substance in that speech, but a lot of snake oil.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jeffries and other Democratic leaders also insisted there was no tension within the party over the variety of responses to the speech, which included outbursts in the chamber and many members skipping it outright. Rep. Katherine Clark, the second ranking Democrat in the House, did not attend the speech.<\/p>\n

\u201cI decided not to go to the State of the Union because I wanted to hear the actual state of the union from my constituents,\u201d said Clark. \u201cBelieve me when I say there is no space between us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trump holds call with Ukraine\u2019s Zelenskyy ahead of more talks with Russia<\/p>\n

The call between the leaders, which comes a day after the fourth anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, was confirmed by a White House official who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.<\/p>\n

Zelenskyy confirmed earlier that a Ukrainian delegation will meet with Trump\u2019s envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, and Russian officials on Thursday in Geneva for another round of talks aimed at ending the conflict.<\/p>\n

Trump delivered a record setting 108-minute State of the Union speech on Tuesday, but did not spend much time discussing the brutal war that during his 2024 campaign he vowed to end on his first day back in the White House. He noted in the address that the \u201ckilling and slaughter between Russia and Ukraine\u201d was leaving thousands dead each month.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Aamer Madhani<\/p>\n

Tech companies to attend White House event to protect consumers against higher electricity prices<\/p>\n

The White House will host major tech companies involved in building out data centers for artificial intelligence on March 4 for them to sign a pledge to protect consumers from higher electricity prices.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s according to a White House official who requested anonymity to discuss the forthcoming event.<\/p>\n

Trump discussed at the State of the Union what he called the \u201cRate Payer Protection Pledge\u201d for tech companies to build, bring or buy their own power for AI data centers, so that families did not shoulder the cost in their electricity bills.<\/p>\n

The companies planning to sign the pledge include Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft, xAI, Oracle and OpenAI.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Joshua Boak<\/p>\n

Public lands nominee says he won\u2019t pursue big sales<\/p>\n

Bureau of Land Management nominee Steve Pearce<\/a> faced pointed questions during a Wednesday confirmation hearing over prior statements suggesting the government controls too much land.<\/p>\n

The former lawmaker from New Mexico acknowledged being frustrated while in Congress about federal management of lands that make up a majority of some western states. But the Republican added that he \u201cabsolutely believes\u201d in the importance of public lands.<\/p>\n

\u201cI do not believe that we\u2019re going to go out and wholesale land from the federal government,\u201d Pearce told members of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. The land bureau manages a quarter-billion acres<\/a> \u2014 about 10% of land in the U.S.<\/p>\n

During Trump\u2019s first term, Pearce urged the Interior Department to reduce the size of the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument outside Las Cruces, New Mexico. He said he does not anticipate revisiting the issue.<\/p>\n

Trump administration hits Iran with new sanctions as nuclear talks near<\/p>\n

The Trump administration on Wednesday imposed another tranche of sanctions on people and companies accused of enabling Iran\u2019s ballistic missile program, drone production and illicit oil sales as the U.S. presses Tehran to make a deal<\/a> ahead of nuclear talks this week.<\/p>\n

The sanctions against 30 people, companies and ships come as Trump has massed the largest U.S. buildup of warships and aircraft in the region<\/a> in decades and has threatened to use military action in a bid to get Iran to constrain its nuclear program<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The latest round of talks between U.S. officials, including Witkoff<\/a>, and Iranian negotiators via mediator Oman are scheduled for Thursday in Geneva<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The new sanctions imposed by the Treasury Department\u2019s Office of Foreign Assets Control include a list of ships accused of being part of Iran\u2019s \u201cshadow fleet,\u201d which refers to rusting oil tankers<\/a> that smuggle oil for countries facing stiff sanctions.<\/p>\n

Citing AP investigation, new bill seeks to prohibit DHS from using full-body restraints<\/p>\n

The Department of Homeland Security would be barred from using a full-body restraint device called the WRAP under a new bill introduced in the House on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

The \u201cFull-Body Restraint Prohibition Act,\u201d sponsored by U.S. Rep. Delia Ramirez, D-Ill., would prohibit future purchases of the device and create oversight and reporting requirements.<\/p>\n

In announcing the legislation, Ramirez cited an Associated Press investigation<\/a> that revealed several examples of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, part of DHS, using the device on people \u2014 sometimes for hours \u2014 on deportation flights dating to 2020.<\/p>\n

The WRAP \u201cfuels destruction in our communities and human suffering. This legislation is an additional step to end the pain and violence caused by DHS,\u201d Ramirez said in a statement.<\/p>\n

\u25b6 Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s surgeon general pick espouses a vision to end chronic disease by addressing root causes<\/p>\n

Dr. Casey Means, a wellness influencer allied with Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., says she wants to address the root causes of chronic disease if chosen as the nation\u2019s doctor.<\/p>\n

Means, in a confirmation hearing<\/a> with the Senate health committee on Wednesday, said her goal is to \u201cget more whole, healthy foods on American plates.\u201d She said the nation\u2019s current system of \u201cwhack-a-mole medicine\u201d that focuses on treating symptoms isn\u2019t working.<\/p>\n

Means\u2019 vision dovetails with Kennedy\u2019s Make America Healthy Again movement. But senators grilled her on some of its more controversial positions, including on vaccines.<\/p>\n

Means wouldn\u2019t commit to advising Americans to receive flu and measles vaccines if confirmed.<\/p>\n

\u201cI believe they\u2019re an important part of public health,\u201d she said of vaccines. \u201cI also do not want to not encourage patients to have a conversation with their doctor.\u201d<\/p>\n

Treasury Department offers a path for Venezuelan oil resales to Cuba, with strict limits<\/p>\n

The U.S. Treasury Department said its licensing arm would implement a \u201cfavorable licensing policy\u201d toward authorization requests for the resale of Venezuelan origin oil in Cuba.<\/p>\n

A favorable licensing policy creates a presumption of approval for specific license applications in otherwise restricted or sanctioned areas.<\/p>\n

According to a post on the Treasury Department\u2019s website Wednesday, the policy is \u201cdirected towards transactions that support the Cuban people, including the Cuban private sector (e.g., exports for commercial and humanitarian use in Cuba).\u201d<\/p>\n

Any people or companies associated with the Cuban military, intelligence services or other government institutions would not be covered by the favorable licensing policy.<\/p>\n

Vance says diplomacy is the ideal option for ending the Russia-Ukraine war<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sure that Vladimir Putin has his military objectives and obviously he hasn\u2019t stopped the killing, even though the president wants that very much to happen, but the best way to solve this is to continue to engage in diplomacy,\u201d the vice president said on Fox News Channel on Wednesday morning.<\/p>\n

Vance noted that this is the directive Trump has given his administration, but that \u201cwe\u2019re under no illusions that these guys are going to meet in the middle of a field, give each other a hug and sing Kumbaya.\u201d<\/p>\n

Vance describes US as \u2018hopeful\u2019 for a \u2018good resolution\u2019 out of Thursday\u2019s nuclear talks with Iran<\/p>\n

The vice president said in an interview with Fox News Channel that the goal from the U.S. perspective has been \u201ccrystal clear\u201d and it\u2019s that Iran can\u2019t have a nuclear weapon.<\/p>\n

He said Trump prefers settling the matter using diplomacy but will unleash the U.S. military against Iran, if necessary, and that \u201cmost Americans understand that you can\u2019t let the craziest and the worst regime in the world have nuclear weapons.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another round of talks between the U.S. and Iran are set for Thursday in Geneva.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re sitting down having another round of diplomatic talks with the Iranians trying to reach a reasonable settlement, but a reasonable settlement toward what end: Iran can\u2019t have a nuclear weapon. It\u2019s very simple,\u201d Vance said. \u201cI think the supreme leader and everybody in their system should understand it. We\u2019ve been crystal clear and we\u2019re hopeful that we\u2019re able to come to a good resolution without the military, but if we have to use the military, the president, of course, has that right as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sen. Warner and Rep. Himes ask Gabbard to reveal more about a top-secret complaint<\/p>\n

Top Democrats on the House and Senate intelligence committees want Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard to provide more details about a top-secret complaint<\/a> alleging she withheld classified material for political reasons.<\/p>\n

In a letter<\/a> sent to Gabbard on Wednesday, Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia and Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut also direct Gabbard to allow the intelligence officer who filed the complaint to meet with lawmakers.<\/p>\n

Gabbard has said she did nothing wrong and said she did all she could to ensure the complaint reached Congress. Two inspectors general for the intelligence community reviewed the claim that Gabbard restricted access to top secret material and found it to be noncredible.<\/p>\n

Democrats have questioned why it took eight months for the complaint to reach Congress and say heavy redactions make it hard to understand the details of the complaint.<\/p>\n

Gabbard\u2019s office did not immediately respond to the lawmakers\u2019 letter.<\/p>\n

Trump called Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum after the killing of a drug lord<\/p>\n

President Trump called Sheinbaum after Mexico\u2019s military killed the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel<\/a> to ask how things were in Mexico.<\/p>\n

Sheinbaum described Monday\u2019s brief call with Trump during her daily news briefing Wednesday. \u201cI told him what the operation was like, that we had had intelligence help from the United States government, that the coordination was very good.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sara Carter, director of the U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy, and U.S. Ambassador Ron Johnson met with Sheinbaum\u2019s security team Tuesday to congratulate them on the operation.<\/p>\n

More than 70 people died in the operation and the violence that erupted after.<\/p>\n

Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Iran pushed back Wednesday against U.S. President Donald Trump\u2019s pressure tactics ahead of critical talks in Geneva over…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":21688,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[7],"tags":[13343,14238,18,65,69,14239,11338,7298,1046],"class_list":["post-22517","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-geneva","tag-ali-vaez","tag-casey-means","tag-donald-trump","tag-geneva","tag-politics","tag-robert-f-kennedy-jr","tag-u-s-news","tag-washington-news","tag-world-news"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22517","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22517"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22517\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/21688"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22517"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22517"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22517"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}