US President Donald Trump said negotiations with Iran will begin on Monday afternoon, expressing confidence that an agreement on the Strait of Hormuz and Iran’s nuclear programme could be reached.
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One while travelling to Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, Trump said discussions with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and Iran influenced his decision to cancel a planned military strike on Friday.
According to Trump, regional partners believed a diplomatic breakthrough was close. He said Iran had also strongly requested negotiations instead of military action.
Trump backs diplomacy but keeps military option
Trump said there was no deadline for reaching an agreement with Tehran. However, he stressed that the United States remained ready to act militarily if diplomacy failed.
He said he preferred a negotiated settlement over military action because armed conflict would result in significant loss of life.
When asked whether the cancelled operation would have targeted Iran’s energy infrastructure, Trump declined to provide further details.
Trump says deal framework already exists
Earlier, Trump announced that he had cancelled the planned attack after what he described as agreement on the framework of a potential deal.
In a post on Truth Social, he said the proposed framework would include the immediate reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and measures to end what he called Iran’s nuclear threat.
Furthermore, Trump said the United States had been fully prepared to launch the operation before deciding to suspend it. He added that the military strike remained cancelled only if negotiations quickly produced a final agreement, while also stating that Israel supported the diplomatic approach.
