But it’s difficult to believe anything US President Donald Trump says, given this time tomorrow he could change his mind and revert to the obliteration playbook.
While the world searches for glimmers of reality in his latest comments, batted away — ironically — as fake news by Iran, there is a much more obvious truth staring us in the face: the global energy crisis which Mr Trump’s actions has sparked.
European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen says the state of affairs caused by the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz to oil tankers by Iranian forces has now deteriorated to the point where the world’s fuel supplies are in a critical situation.
Sceptics of Mr Trump’s proclamations of "very good" talks with Iran believe he has blinked first in the face of international pressure and condemnation over skyrocketing oil prices.
New Zealand consumers have been feeling the pain at the pump, struggling to cope with petrol having risen by more than 50c in recent weeks. Now, the government is dipping into the coffers to try to ease things for low to middle-income Kiwis with children.
Yesterday, Finance Minister Nicola Willis announced about 150,000 families will get an extra $50 a week through the in-work tax credit in the Working for Families scheme. The disbursement, which excludes superannuitants and beneficiaries, is for a year or until 91 octane petrol drops below $3 a litre for four consecutive weeks.
The government’s aim is to help what she calls the squeezed middle — parents working but on modest incomes and ineligible for the main benefits.
The targeted relief is something, but hardly anything generous. It does little or nothing for struggling rural workers reliant on diesel, and beneficiaries will have to wait until next month to get any relief when their welfare payments rise in line with inflation.
Most of us realise the government cannot make things easier for everyone without causing economic problems down the line. But we wonder why the emergency package did not include incentives to encourage more use of public transport, nor something for low-income families without children.
Catch of the day
The word "sustainable" is worth reminding Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones about as his Fisheries Amendment Bill has its first reading in Parliament this week.
"Transparency" is another word that could be mentioned — and we’re not talking about the clarity of the bright blue seas around New Zealand.
The Bill has been stirring up recreational fishers who believe it is heavily biased towards the commercial fishing industry. Fishing personality Matt Wilson considers it designed purely to maximise industry profits and sees it as the "beginning of the end" for fish stocks.
The minister is downplaying the opprobrium, describing those critical as "a range of noisy voices".
The fishers’ main concern is over the plan to remove the minimum-size limit — to ensure fish reach sexual maturity before they are caught — for the commercial fishing industry from several popular species, including snapper.
Currently, recreational fishers cannot take snapper smaller than between 25cm and 30cm depending on the location, and the commercial sector limit is 25cm. As Mr Wilson says, you don’t need to be a genius to work out that, if they are not allowed to breed, their numbers will fall.
The minister says the disincentive provision in the Bill is if you catch undersize fish you will have to pay for them. At present, commercial fishers have to dump undersize fish dead or alive, and it doesn’t count in their quota.
Mr Jones says cameras on fishing vessels will ensure the size of the take and industry conduct is appropriate. But if the Bill passes, the public will never know that, as footage will be kept secret, exempt from the Official Information Act. Anyone caught leaking it or whistleblowing will be fined up to $50,000.
This is an alarming move which needs to be resisted. Why do that unless there is something to hide?
