Former lobbyist Nick Stewart, who worked at the State Department during Donald Trump's first term, has joined the US negotiating team to resolve the conflict with Iran, CBS News reported, citing two US officials.
According to them, Stewart joined the team shortly before the talks in Islamabad in early April, which ended inconclusively. The delegation also included US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner.
As CBS notes, Stewart was appointed at the initiative of Kushner. He previously worked with the lobbying arm of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, known for its tough stance on Iran.
According to data filed with the Senate, Stewart has appeared in more than a dozen lobbying reports since 2023. His total foreign policy spending exceeds $2 million. He has also worked on initiatives related to sanctions against Iran and Russia.
Meanwhile, as CBS reports, questions have arisen in Congress about the composition of the US delegation due to the absence of nuclear security experts from relevant US agencies. US Energy Secretary Chris Wright responded by noting that support from the department and non-proliferation experts is being provided remotely.
Earlier on Saturday, Congresswoman Claudia Tenney called Stewart “one of America’s leading experts on Iran policy” on the social media platform X.
“Nick is one of America’s most insightful experts on Iran policy. His extensive experience and proven leadership skills will help achieve President Trump’s peace goals and secure a deal,” she said.
Meanwhile, Iran has allowed the resumption of military action with the US as peace talks have reached a deadlock.
According to Tehran, Washington is not fulfilling any of its promises. Iran believes that the actions and statements of American officials are aimed primarily at preventing a drop in oil prices.
On May 1, Trump said he was dissatisfied with Iran's proposals for resolving the conflict, transmitted through Pakistan. He also expressed doubts about the success of the negotiations, citing serious disagreements within the Iranian leadership.
Since the beginning of the naval blockade, the United States has intercepted 48 ships trying to enter or leave Iranian ports, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) reported on social networks.
“In the past 20 days, 48 ships have been diverted to enforce the blockade“, the statement said.
The agency published a photo of the US Navy's landing ship USS New Orleans, which is currently in the Arabian Sea. CENTCOM noted that US forces continue to patrol international waters and enforce the current naval blockade of Iran.
The US blockade of Iranian ports began on April 13. According to the latest data, among the ships intercepted by the US are 31 tankers carrying 53 million barrels of Iranian oil worth at least $4.8 billion, the Pentagon said. Two more ships were seized by the US military. In addition, some tankers have begun to choose a more expensive and longer route to deliver oil to China due to fears of maritime interception.
Against this background, Iran's land storage facilities are full, and due to the inability to load new tankers with oil, Tehran has begun to use older ships as floating storage facilities. This is part of the aim of the US blockade to exhaust Iran's oil storage capacity, which will eventually lead to the closure of its oil wells.