U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to appoint his Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff , as responsible for handling Washington's diplomacy with Iran, the British Financial Times reported on Thursday. Sources familiar with the details claimed that the move indicates that Trump is willing to consider a diplomatic solution before increasing pressure on the Islamic Republic.
A former senior Israeli official told the newspaper that "I don't see the administration using force at the beginning of their term before at least trying to exhaust other means. This does not fit with the approach that war started with Biden and he's going to end them."
Meanwhile, on Thursday Trump said while signing more executive orders that "it would be nice if the Iranian issue could be resolved, without Israel attacking military facilities on its territory."
Witkoff, who played a crucial role in reaching agreements on the hostage deal and cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, is expected to head the team that will handle the U.S. response to the Iranian nuclear program, as part of Trump's promise to "stop the wars" in the Middle East, according to the sources.
In his first term, Trump withdrew from the nuclear agreement with Iran in 2018, imposing severe sanctions on the Islamic Republic, warning that if it fought Washington and worked to obtain nuclear weapons, "that would be the official end of Iran."
After the November election, during the period between administrations, Trump’s team outlined plans to relaunch the “maximum pressure” campaign on Iran, whether through new sanctions or toughening existing measures. However, Trump and his aides have expressed a desire in early meetings to leave room for avoiding a full-scale confrontation with Iran, and several administration officials have told foreign diplomats and their counterparts that they expect Witkoff to lead efforts to see if a diplomatic settlement can be reached with Iran.
However, Witkoff's main focus is expected to continue to be the implementation of the Gaza cease-fire and hostage deal. At the same time as speculation has risen about Witkoff, Trump appointed Morgan Ortagus, State Department spokeswoman in his first term, as Witkoff's deputy. Ortagus previously served in the Middle East and is familiar with the region.
U.S. officials say that Trump's approach toward Tehran, and Witkoff's powers, have not yet been clarified, but several of the new president's appointments hold positions that negotiations with Iran should be considered, and have also expressed doubts about attacking its nuclear facilities.
Among the new appointments are Michael DiMino, a senior Trump administration official in the Pentagon on Middle East issues, who previously served in the CIA, and who has expressed support for implementing a restrained policy toward Tehran. Elbridge Colby, Trump's nominee for undersecretary of defense for policy, has also warned against any military action against Iran. The two stand against more hawkish elements in the new administration, including National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who said in his Senate confirmation hearing that he would support "any arrangement that allows us to have safety and stability in the region but one in which we’re clear-eyed."
White House National Security Council spokesman Brian Hughes said that "we have no announcements to share at this time," when asked about the new administration's approach toward Iran. At the same time, Western sources believe that Iran is in its weakest position in decades, after the destruction of the Hamas terror army in the Gaza Strip and the severe blow that the IDF inflicted on Hezbollah in Lebanon. Added to these is Israel's extensive air attack on Iran, which resulted in the destruction of most of its air defense systems.
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Iran, for its part, has also signaled that it is open to negotiations, although analysts estimate that any dialogue with the Islamic Republic will be difficult for it and for Trump. Iran’s vice-president for strategic affairs Mohammad Javad Zarif recently said at the Davos forum that he hopes Trump will be "more serious, more focused, and more realistic" with Iran. He noted that the sanctions have imposed a heavy economic burden on Iranian citizens and its government, but refused to admit that his country has a hand in the terrorist activities of organizations such as Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis in Yemen. "We have never had 'proxies,'" he claimed. At the same time, the Saudi Al-Hadath TV channel reported that the Iranian foreign minister said that the Islamic Republic is "ready for negotiations with Washington."
Witkoff's appointment as Iran special envoy has sparked opposition from some of his opponents in Congress and in Washington in general, who worry he will be too quick to drop pressure on Iran in trying to achieve a possible deal.
“He’s already lifting pressure on Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran, and in the process abandoning American hostages and endangering Israel,” said a senior Republican Congressional staffer. “He keeps saying he knows what Trump wants, but he doesn’t understand what Trump believes.”