U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to members of the media as he departs from the South Lawn of the White House on October 7, 2026 in Washington, DC.
Anna Moneymaker | Getty Images
US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that he no longer wants a deal with Iran, following reports that the US military is preparing to attack Iran, possibly before the midterm elections.
“I don’t think this deal is really what I want, but they’re willing to give anything to stop it,” Trump said late Wednesday at a campaign rally with Republican candidates in San Antonio, Texas. Steve Witkoff, the U.S. special envoy for the Middle East, is working on the deal and is “doing very well,” Trump added.
The U.S. president and his national security team have discussed the possibility of resuming large-scale U.S. military operations in the coming weeks, NBC News reported Wednesday, citing a U.S. official and another person familiar with the discussions.
Axios reported on the same day that a possible resumption of armed conflict could include “massive bombing” of Iranian energy, infrastructure and nuclear targets, adding that a military invasion could affect the outcome of the upcoming midterm elections.
President Trump’s approval rating has fallen to an all-time low amid concerns about the rising cost of living due to soaring gasoline and diesel prices.
Earlier this week, President Trump said the biggest problem for the U.S. government is that no one knows who is running Iran during talks to end the conflict. Iranian officials denied these claims and said, “The problem is actually the opposite.” Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Esmaeli Baghayei pointed to “contradictory positions and mixed messages from US officials.”
Kupler said oil prices are still rising even as Middle East exports have recovered to near pre-war levels. The total amount of crude oil flowing out from the Gulf, excluding Iran, plus the amount of crude oil from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, is now around 18.5 million barrels per day (Mbd), the pre-conflict level.
“Normalization no longer has to wait for an agreement,” said Matt Wright, chief cargo analyst at Kpler, predicting that “normalization will be slow and uneven” as the conflict continues, and that operational adaptations will help traffic recover, rather than waiting for diplomatic cues.
