WASHINGTON — President Trump declared on Monday he’s giving Iran one “last chance before decapitation” – betting on lucky No. 13 for his final ultimatum.
Speaking from the Oval Office, Trump claimed negotiations are underway to reopen the Strait of Hormuz as soon as Tuesday after he called off a large-scale “World War II” intensity military operation over the weekend to give Iran a final chance to avoid destruction.
“This is a last chance,” Trump said. “This is the last chance for them to sign a good document.”
“I want to give them every last chance before decapitation,” he added.
The president has given Iran at least a dozen chances since the war began on Feb. 28, threatening strikes or imposing deadlines for major actions by Tehran only to reverse course or extend time limits, according to a review by The Post of prior statements.
This includes backing down from operations to blow up power plants or moving self-imposed deadlines for military strikes.
For example, he delayed attacks twice in the spring, halted planned bombing in April to keep talks alive, backed off further strikes in May after Gulf allies pushed for restraint, and held fire again in June as US and Iranian negotiators worked toward a framework deal.
Asked what was different this time that makes him believe Iran would finally bend, Trump implied he’s trying to avoid large scale damage to the Iranians.
“It’s very tough to do what we have planned, still planned. We’ll see what happens, but it’s very very tough thing to do,” he said of so-called decapitation strikes, which would target Iranian leadership instead of infrastructure for the first time since the first days of the war.
“I think I’m very proud of the fact that I will give people give people a chance. This is a big move to do an attack that big on a country I’d rather not do” he added.
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Trump said Iran requested the negotiations after backing from key Gulf allies, including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, following his decision to call off what he described as a massive US military strike over the weekend.
“We are talking right now,” Trump said. “We’re talking, and we’re talking at the request of Iran, backed by Saudi Arabia, backed by UAE, and backed by Qatar in particular.”
Trump suggested Americans would soon know whether diplomacy succeeds.
“You’ll find out today or tomorrow,” he said. “They’re going to go quickly, one way or the other. It’s not very complex.”
But Iran claimed Monday is not negotiating with Washington, but with Oman on plans to reopen the strait.
“To avoid any misunderstanding, it is important to clarify what the current negotiations are about and who they are with. We are not negotiating with the United States at this time,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said.
“Our negotiations are with Oman and are focused on reaching an understanding on a route that will ensure the safe passage of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz,” he added.
The president also laid out what he described as a two-phase plan, saying the immediate priority is reopening the Strait of Hormuz — the narrow waterway that serves as one of the world’s most important oil shipping lanes.
“We’re talking about the strait, the opening of the strait, having it open literally by tomorrow, completely open, and that’s phase one,” Trump said.
After maritime traffic resumes, he said, Washington will turn to negotiating over Iran’s nuclear program — the president’s north star.
“The second phase is we then will talk about the nuclear capacity,” Trump said. “Basically, I think most say the denuclearization of Iran has to happen.”
“Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon,” he added. “I have never changed in that.”
Throughout the war, Trump has followed a familiar playbook: threaten devastating strikes, then pull back at the last minute. He has backed away from military action roughly a dozen times — extending attack and cease-fire deadlines, pausing bombing campaigns and shelving strikes as diplomacy took another swing.
