President Donald Trump said Thursday the United States will not attack Iran before the 3 November midterms and that talks with Tehran are productive. He has not ended the port blockade.
President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the United States will not attack Iran before the 3 November midterm elections. In a Truth Social post reported by Reuters, he wrote that Washington and Tehran were having productive discussions and that the United States would not attack Iran at any time prior to those elections.
The statement is a change in public posture, not a formal ceasefire. Reuters reported that the war began in February when the United States and Israel launched strikes on Iran. CNN reported that Trump said the blockade of Iranian ports would remain in full force and that his stated goal is to keep Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
The New York Times reported that the military has continued to prepare options to restart major combat operations even as Trump has vetoed earlier proposals for large operations against Iran or the Houthis. The Times said officials described five such proposals in recent months, each rejected by the president.
Iran's state media, cited by Reuters, reported that Tehran would not abandon uranium enrichment or hand over its uranium stockpile. That account cited the head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization and followed comments by Vice President JD Vance, who told Reuters that Iran must make meaningful reductions in enrichment capacity.
The next test is whether the talks produce a written change in the blockade or in enrichment, or whether military planning continues without a new strike before 3 November. No attack date was announced on Thursday.
People Sentiments Mixed
- Trump wrote that the United States and Iran were having productive discussions.
- CNN reported that Trump said the port blockade would remain in full force.