President Donald Trump has been insisting for weeks that a peace deal between the United States and Iran is near, but he has escalated his rhetoric against Iran, suggesting time is running out to resolve the crisis diplomatically.
The US military on Tuesday launched attacks on targets inside Iran following the downing of a helicopter overnight in the Strait of Hormuz. President Trump has indicated that the United States may continue to carry out attacks.
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“I may continue,” the US president told Fox News on Wednesday. “They had a chance to get a deal and survive.”
“We’re going to attack them, we’re going to attack them very, very hard,” Trump told reporters at an Oval Office event later.
Iran responded to recent US attacks by firing missiles at US military bases in Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan.
While such back-and-forth attacks over the past few weeks have remained contained and ended quickly, President Trump’s comments suggest that recent episodes of fighting may not be over yet. This has raised questions about whether the April 8 ceasefire has been lifted.
President Trump told Fox News that Iran is “taking advantage of the United States” in talks that have failed to result in a long-term deal.
He reiterated his threat to bomb the country’s power plants and bridges, despite concerns that attacks on civilian infrastructure could amount to war crimes.
Asked about the threat at an Oval Office event on Wednesday, President Trump said he would not confirm whether there were plans to press ahead with an attack. “But it can be done,” he said.
He also called for an early conclusion to the ongoing negotiations between the United States and Iran. “They should sign the contract,” he added.
Earlier in the day, President Trump repeated his claim of victory, writing on his Truth Social platform that Iran was “totally defeated.”
“They took too long to negotiate an agreement that would have been great for them, and now they will have to pay the price,” he said.
Iranian officials have stressed that they will not sign any deal that does not recognize their country’s “rights.”
The Iranian government also indicated that it is not afraid of returning to war.
Despite President Trump’s claims that Iran had been defeated militarily, Iran was able to maintain a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz that responded to the US attack and sent energy prices soaring.
Haji Babaei, deputy speaker of Iran’s parliament, said on Wednesday that diplomacy only works if “the demands of the Iranian state” are met.
“America will lose the economic and military war,” Babaei said, according to state news agency IRNA.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian also said that Iran “must break away” from the current situation of “no war, no peace” in the region, but stressed that Iran “will not bow down” in the face of threats.
“War is certainly not in the interest of this country, but if they try to violate our dignity, our land, our territory, we will not surrender,” he said, according to IRNA.
Despite President Trump’s hardening stance toward Iran, he continues to face criticism at home over his handling of the war.
“This is a daily reminder to all of you that the President has lost complete control of, and therefore interest in, the Iran war,” Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy wrote on social media platform X on Wednesday.
“He is now obsessed with his social circle and is plotting to profit from his presidency as gas and food prices soar.”
Critics say the US president has a busy domestic agenda that could deter him from resuming a full war with Iran.
The United States will co-host the FIFA World Cup over the next five weeks. Preparations are underway for celebrations to mark the country’s 250th anniversary of independence, and the campaign season for the November midterm elections is heating up.
