August 18, 2026

Good morning! Today is Tuesday, August 18th 2026, and this is The American Conservative's Morning Brief. The 60-day U.S.–Iran memorandum of understanding expired Monday with Tehran denying any extension, as Iran hardens its demands to include war reparations, sanctions relief, and a full American military withdrawal from the region. On day 171 of the Iran War, President Trump threatened to bomb Oman if it "gets in the way" of a deal, even as Vice President Vance stressed cheap gasoline as the administration's top priority and Brent crude closed above $89 a barrel. Allum Bokhari argues Anthropic's lonely stand against open-weight AI models is less about safety than about walling off competitors, aligning the company with Democratic regulatory instincts and a familiar monopoly playbook. and now for the details. We begin with the Middle East, where the 60-day deadline on the U.S.–Iran framework peace deal expired Monday. That agreement, known as the memorandum of understanding, was signed in June by President Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian. It was meant to lock in a ceasefire, reopen the Strait of Hormuz, and set the stage for talks on Iran's nuclear program. It fell apart within weeks. The Saudi outlet Al Arabiya reported Monday that Washington and Tehran had agreed to extend the ceasefire, but Iran's Foreign Ministry appeared to contradict that account. Spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said, quote, "We did not start any negotiations at all, and the U.S. violated the understanding from the very beginning; therefore, the 60-day issue is not relevant." As Harrison Berger reports for The American Conservative, the deal broke down after Iran accused the United States of opening an alternative shipping lane in the Strait outside Iranian management. Tehran struck vessels using that route, and Washington resumed its bombing campaign, with the most recent intensive round of strikes coming in late July. Berger notes that Iran's latest proposal, published August 8th, reflects a firmer bargaining position than what it accepted in June. The New York Times reports Tehran is now demanding the U.S. lift its naval blockade and sanctions, withdraw American forces from around Iran, pay war reparations, release frozen assets, and end attacks on Iran's regional allies. Staying with the war, now on day 171. President Trump told Fox News on Monday that if Oman, quote, "gets in the way" of an Iran deal, the United States will "bomb the s-word out of them." In a separate Truth Social post, Trump said the number one goal of the Iran War is ensuring that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon in any form. Those remarks appear to sit uneasily alongside comments from Vice President JD Vance last Thursday, who said the administration's "goal number one" is to keep oil and gasoline cheap for Americans. As Harrison Berger reports, Special Envoy Jared Kushner held talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, a day after meeting Hamas's Khalil al-Hayya in Egypt. Meanwhile, Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said in a weekend interview that Israel should be killing "thirty to forty" people each night in Gaza, adding, quote, "there are people there who are not worthy of life." On the economic front, the shipping analytics firm Kpler recorded 95 confirmed crossings through the Strait of Hormuz last week, but just three on Sunday. Yemen's Houthis said Monday they had targeted a Saudi military vessel and four escort ships in the Red Sea. Brent Crude closed above $89 a barrel, and AAA recorded the national average price of regular gasoline at $4.06 per gallon. Those are today's highlights. For the full stories and more, visit theamericanconservative.com. Thank you for starting your morning with us.