President Trump issued a new warning to Iran Thursday, telling Islamic Republic officials to “get serious” about negotiating an end to the four-week-old war “before it is too late.”
Trump’s warning comes as reports surface that the US military is preparing an assault it hopes will be the “final blow” to the Tehran authorities if things do not progress.
“The Iranian negotiators are very different and ‘strange,’” Trump posted on Truth Social.
“They are ‘begging’ us to make a deal, which they should be doing since they have been militarily obliterated, with zero chance of a comeback, and yet they publicly state that they are only ‘looking at our proposal.’ WRONG!!!
“They better get serious soon, before it is too late,” Trump added, “because once that happens, there is NO TURNING BACK, and it won’t be pretty!”
Axios reported that military officials were prepping a massive bombing campaign if talks go nowhere and were readying four primary options that Trump could choose from to impose maximum pressure on the theocratic regime.
According to the report, those options reportedly include invading or blockading Iran’s oil export hub of Kharg Island; seizing Larak Island, which Tehran uses as a military outpost to maintain control of the strategic Strait of Hormuz; seizing three other islands near the western entrance to the strait that are controlled by Iran but claimed by the United Arab Emirates; and stopping or seizing ships sending Iranian oil through the strait, choking off Iran’s last economic lifeline.
The president could also order special forces to secure highly enriched uranium buried at three nuclear facilities hit by the US this past June, or call for a second round of airstrikes to ensure the material remains inaccessible.
Meanwhile, on the peace talks, Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar confirmed for the first time Thursday that indirect talks between the US and Iran were taking place, mediated by the Islamabad government as well as Egypt, Turkey and other countries.
Reports circulated earlier this week that Vice President JD Vance could travel to Pakistan this coming weekend to seal a cease-fire deal, but a source told The New York Post that while such an intervention was a “possibility,” it was not “even close to happening.”
Trump initially raised hopes for an end to the war that has decimated Iran’s top leadership and rattled the global economy on Monday, when he announced he was postponing planned strikes on the Islamic Republic’s energy infrastructure by five days to allow time to work out an agreement to end the fighting.
This is an ongoing story. Check back for further updates.