Active Stocks
Thu Mar 28 2024 15:59:33
  1. Tata Steel share price
  2. 155.90 2.00%
  1. ICICI Bank share price
  2. 1,095.75 1.08%
  1. HDFC Bank share price
  2. 1,448.20 0.52%
  1. ITC share price
  2. 428.55 0.13%
  1. Power Grid Corporation Of India share price
  2. 277.05 2.21%
Business News/ News / World/  Social media may have helped de-escalate tensions between US, Iran
BackBack

Social media may have helped de-escalate tensions between US, Iran

According to a report, tweets by both US President Donald Trump and Iran foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, helped contain the situation
  • There was no direct communication between the two sides with neither country having an embassy in the other
  • U.S. President Donald Trump (Photo: Reuters)Premium
    U.S. President Donald Trump (Photo: Reuters)

    Social media platforms have come under severe criticism of late for allegedly allowing unverified content and “fake news" on their platforms, but Twitter could possibly be credited with helping curb the searing tensions between the US and Iran and not letting it spiral into a full-scale war.

    According to a report on the American news website Wired.com on Thursday, the tweets by both US President Donald Trump and Iran foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Tuesday night, after the killing of Iran’s Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani in a US drone strike in Baghdad on Friday, helped contain the situation, as neither wished to escalate tit-for-tat attacks into a full-fledged war.

    Graphic: Naveen Kumar/Saini/Mint
    View Full Image
    Graphic: Naveen Kumar/Saini/Mint

    Click here to view enlarged graphic

    “The tweets proved a remarkable modern-day answer to the long-running challenge world leaders have faced in struggling to communicate between nations during unfolding crises—communication is necessary both to understand adversaries’ intentions and to telegraph their own," the article said.

    It noted that between 7pm ET (American Eastern Time) and 10pm ET, Twitter was awash with rumors that the US had ordered its fighter jets to deliver an appropriate response after Iran had hit American bases in Iraq, and subsequently, Tehran had launched several more missiles in a retaliatory move.

    This was followed by the US Federal Aviation Authority’s warning to all American commercial airlines not to overfly Iran, Iraq, and the Gulf of Oman, fuelling speculation that tensions could spike further.

    Then came tweets from the verified accounts of Zarif and Trump stating facts.

    “Iran took & concluded proportionate measures in self-defense under Article 51 of UN Charter targeting base from which cowardly armed attack against our citizens and senior officials were launched. We do not seek escalation or war, but will defend ourselves against any aggression," said Zarif’s tweet. Analysts and others were quick to home in on words like “concluded" and that Iran was not seeking “escalation or war".

    Trump’s tweet followed soon after, with a seemingly encouraging “All is well!’

    According to Santosh Desai, who heads Future Brands, a brand consulting and management firm, in this case, Twitter, seems to have emerged as the “public hotline" between the Iranians and the Americans. There was no direct communication between the two sides with neither country having an embassy in the other.

    “Most often social media platforms have been used to breed trouble. It’s also been used by people from all walks of life to make public pronouncements of various kinds," said Desai, who comments on trends in the social media. “In this case, it seems to have been used by Trump and Zarif to defuse tensions, to put across their messages in a transparent manner, very directly without anyone in the middle. If it was done between diplomats, the lexicon would have been different and you would need people to interpret it. Here it was clear and, therefore, fortuitous."

    Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed – it's all here, just a click away! Login Now!

    Catch all the Business News, Market News, Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.
    More Less
    Published: 09 Jan 2020, 11:30 PM IST
    Next Story footLogo
    Recommended For You
    Switch to the Mint app for fast and personalized news - Get App