President Donald Trump said on Saturday that Iran is "virtually giving up any plans of a nuclear weapon," while signaling that a decision on Washington’s next step is coming.
"Iran, as you know, is virtually giving up any plans of a nuclear weapon," Trump told reporters as he departed the White House. He said he has a decision to make about Iran and that the matter would be resolved "the hard way or the easy way." Trump also said oil prices "are right now lower" than they were under the Biden administration.
"Possible" renewed bombing
On Thursday, asked whether the United States could escalate bombing after the November midterm elections, Trump answered: "Possible." He said the U.S. had spent six months replenishing its weapons stocks and dismissed an Iranian ceasefire proposal that included reopening the Strait of Hormuz as "not good enough," even as indirect contacts continue through Qatari and Pakistani mediators.
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf has warned that Iran would retaliate against further military action. Iran’s currency hit record lows on Saturday, with the euro crossing 3 million rials for the first time and the dollar trading near 2.7 million rials on the open market.
Trump made the remarks as he left the White House for a rally in Ohio. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said during his visit to the UN General Assembly in New York last month that Tehran does not seek nuclear weapons for religious reasons, and offered to dilute Iran's enriched uranium stockpile under international supervision. Tehran says it will not give up its peaceful civilian nuclear program or its basic nuclear capacity unless the US lifts economic sanctions.
