President Trump has told senior aides he may hold off on resuming military strikes on Iran, despite repeatedly threatening to attack the country if it endangers US interests.
Trump told senior advisers in recent days that he would refrain from launching new strikes as long as Iran or its Houthi proxies in Yemen don’t provoke the US, Reuters reported.
A week ago, Trump confirmed US attacks on Iranian defense facilities on Qeshm island in the Strait of Hormuz, describing them as “minor strikes.”
The president on Thursday told Salem News Channel he would hit Iran to prevent it from threatening US allies and American vessels “without hesitation.”
That same day, he told sports journalist Stephen A. Smith in an interview that he was holding off on further strikes at the request of regional allies.
“I could end it immediately, but at the request of the nations that I am looking to protect, we are doing it a little bit longer way, a bit more civilly,” he told the sports personality, who in October dined with Trump and talk-show host Bill Maher.
Adding to the administration’s mixed messages, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told the Federalist Society on Friday that the war was “militarily effectively over.”
“And right now, frankly, the economic pain that we are inflicting on that regime is so great that there’s no need for military action because we’ve weakened them so much,” he said. “But I think victory is ensuring that they never have a nuclear weapon.”
The US maintains a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz which is choking off Iran’s economy and contributing to soaring inflation.
On-and-off negotiations through Qatari and other intermediaries have yet to bear fruit. Trump said Wednesday that “we won” the war, but posted on Truth Social Thursday that the US no longer needed a deal.
“We don’t need a deal with Iran. Those days have long since passed,” he wrote. “We’ve got their money, Hundreds of Billions of Dollars, and we’ve got their Strait!”
Behind-the-scenes diplomacy in recent weeks has also included Trump’s calls with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, according to a senior official. Both leaders urged restraint.
The shifting public and private signals come after Trump suggested the US might resume strikes after the midterms, in which Republicans lost control of both the House and Senate. Opponents of the war in Congress are threatening to cut off its funding.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether Trump has said he would hold off on attacks unless Iran or its proxies launch new provocations.
Meanwhile, tensions remain high in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy claimed Friday that two oil tankers exploded after striking sea mines while attempting to pass through the waterway without coordinating with Iranian authorities, according to Iranian state TV.
Iran renewed its threats at a UN Security Council meeting Friday, warning of an “immediate and decisive response” to any renewed US or Israeli attack, according to Iran’s deputy UN envoy Gholamhossein Darzi.
