U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday that an agreement with Iran remained possible and appeared to rule out renewed American military strikes immediately after Tuesday's midterm elections, while Vice President JD Vance said Washington had set no deadline for Tehran to reach a deal.
Asked by reporters after a speech at the Washington Reflecting Pool whether he was considering striking Iran after the elections, Trump replied, "No."
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JD Vance said Washington had set no deadline for Tehran to reach a deal
(Photo: Andrew Harnik / Getty Images North America / AFP)
The remarks represented a shift in tone from his recent warnings of further military action, suggesting that the administration was leaving room for diplomacy despite continuing disagreements with Tehran.
Trump said he believed Iranian leaders wanted an agreement and that a deal "could happen."
Vance echoed that assessment, describing "a number of good conversations with the Iranians."
"Look, the president and I both feel pretty good about the prospects for potentially coming to a negotiated settlement. We're going to keep on working at it," he said.
Vance also said the administration had not imposed a deadline for reaching an agreement before potentially resuming military strikes.
Iran maintains conditions for nuclear negotiations
Iranian negotiators left Doha on Sunday following a third consecutive day of talks with Qatari mediators.
Tehran has condensed its proposals in an effort to accelerate implementation of a potential agreement, but continues to insist that Washington take steps to meet its demands before negotiations over Iran's nuclear program can begin.
Despite his more conciliatory remarks, Trump reiterated that preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons remained a fundamental American requirement.
Trump said he believed Iranian leaders wanted an agreement and that a deal 'could happen'
(Photo: AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
"We're not going to allow Iran ever to have a nuclear weapon, and they understand that. They've understood that and they've said it even recently," Trump said. "If we allowed Iran to have a nuclear weapon, this country could never function in the same way. The whole world would be a different place," he added.
Trump also played down the current level of military hostilities, arguing that the confrontation was not technically a war because relatively little fighting had taken place recently.
"We wiped out their leaders — first level of leaders, the second level of leaders, and they've asked us, please stop doing that, and we will," he said, referring to earlier American strikes against senior Iranian figures.
Unexplained explosions reported on Qeshm Island
Separately, Iran's state news agency IRNA reported Monday that several explosions had been heard on Qeshm Island, near the Strait of Hormuz. The cause of the explosions was unclear, and Iranian authorities had not officially confirmed their source.
There was no confirmed connection between the reported explosions and American military activity.
Trump's comments came as the conflict's economic consequences, particularly high gasoline prices, continued to weigh on American voters ahead of Tuesday's midterm elections.
While the administration has signaled confidence in the prospects for a negotiated settlement, no final agreement has been announced, and Washington has not ruled out further military action if diplomatic efforts fail.