President Trump wrote that the United States would not attack Iran before the 3 November elections and that talks were productive. Officials told the Times the military is still preparing options.
President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the United States would not attack Iran before the 3 November midterm elections and that the two countries were having productive discussions, The New York Times reported. He posted the statement on Truth Social and said a blockade of Iranian oil exports and ships had left the country in a very bad condition.
American officials told the Times that the military is still preparing options to restart major combat operations. In recent months, officials said, the national security team and the Pentagon made five proposals for major operations against Iran or the Houthis, and Trump vetoed each one.
CNN reported that the post followed Atlantic and Axios accounts that he had been considering a return to major combat before the election. The network noted that he has reversed Iran statements before, so the pledge is not a settled military order.
The Times said the US military response has been more muted in recent weeks even as Iran has increased attacks on oil tankers. The war is in its eighth month, CNN wrote, after Trump had described it as a campaign that would last weeks.
Thursday's development is a public timing statement, not a ceasefire agreement. No text of talks with Tehran was published in the accounts used here.
People Sentiments Mixed
- Donald Trump wrote that the United States will not attack Iran at any time before the midterm elections and that discussions were productive.