US President Donald Trump has said he is highly unlikely to order fresh military strikes against Iran if negotiations to end the conflict make progress, despite continued attacks on vessels in and around the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump made the remarks during a phone interview with CNN on Sunday, saying any decision to resume military action would depend on whether Tehran agreed to a strong deal.
“It depends on whether or not they sign a very strong agreement,” Trump said. “The answer is, highly unlikely it’s going to be necessary.”
Although CNN did not specify the exact question that prompted his response, Trump said the US had identified potential infrastructure targets in Iran should military operations resume.
He specifically mentioned 38 bridges, claiming American forces could destroy them “in literally one hour”.
Later on Sunday, Trump announced on Truth Social that “Task Force Iron Gate is in full force and effect” on Iran.
The campaign, first reported by Reuters, is aimed at restricting Tehran’s movement of advanced weapons and other sanctioned materials across its land borders and through the Caspian Sea.
Trump’s latest comments come amid growing political pressure over the war following last week’s US midterm elections, in which Republicans suffered defeats.
The US President acknowledged that the conflict contributed to the party’s poor performance, while Vice President JD Vance went further, directly blaming the war.
In a social media post, Vance said: “The reason we lost is the war.”
Trump told reporters on Sunday that “a lot of people did not like Vance’s comments on Iran.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is also considered a potential successor to Trump, declined to directly link the election results to the conflict.
However, he defended the President’s decision to launch military action, saying: “All I can tell you is that the president of the United States identified a very real threat to this country that existed for a very long period of time, and he addressed it.”
Commenting on diplomatic efforts, Rubio said he did not believe an agreement was imminent, accusing Iran of making unacceptable demands.
“The president would always prefer to solve this and every problem diplomatically. Sometimes that’s not possible, unfortunately. But if there’s a chance to do it. We’ll explore it. Right now, it hasn’t been very productive because the Iranian demands are simply not just unacceptable, but in some cases outrageous and ridiculous and really not realistic,” Rubio said.
Trump had previously suggested that major military operations against Iran could resume after the midterm elections. However, there has been no indication of a large-scale US military campaign.
Iran has warned that it would retaliate against US and Israeli targets if Washington resumes its attacks.
Meanwhile, tensions have continued in the Strait of Hormuz, where both countries have reported attacks on vessels, disrupting the movement of energy supplies and other commodities vital to the global economy.
Iranian state television reported that explosions heard in southern Iran on Saturday could be linked to the country’s military activities rather than US strikes.
The broadcaster said officials had not confirmed reports of missile attacks on Iranian territory following explosions in several locations, including Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran also reported that two vessels had struck mines while a third caught fire in the strategic waterway.
Separately, the US military said its air force had disabled a vessel in the Gulf of Oman, beyond the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran’s Tasnim news agency reported that two missiles had struck Qeshm Island, although there was no official confirmation of the incident or information about possible damage.
Neither Washington nor Tehran has commented on the report.
The US had earlier announced on November 2 that it carried out a limited defensive strike on the island against Iranian forces allegedly using surface-to-air missiles against American assets.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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