Trump Says There Is No Plan for an Immediate Military Strike on Iran
US President Donald Trump has confirmed that Washington has no plan to carry out a military operation against Iran immediately. Amid ongoing geopolitical tensions, he said the decision for now is not to launch a military attack on Tehran.
Trump made the position clear while facing reporters as he left the White House to attend an election rally in Michigan. Asked directly whether Iran would be attacked, Trump said no military step is being taken for now.
Earlier on Sunday, however, the US president had sent Tehran a stern warning. In an interview with the US outlet Fox News, Trump said the only unresolved question now is whether there will be a new agreement with Tehran or whether the country will be destroyed completely.
In the same interview, claiming absolute US military dominance in the Persian Gulf, he said the strategic Strait of Hormuz is now under Washington's control and that Iran is unable to extract any benefit from it.
On Saturday, too, Trump had hinted that both a military strike and a diplomatic settlement remained open. At the time, he said he had deep doubts about whether Tehran would honour any bilateral commitment.
On February 28 this year, US forces carried out major air strikes on Iran jointly with Israel. A temporary ceasefire reached later in June did not become permanent.
The announcement of no attack on Iran came against this backdrop of tension, ahead of the US midterm elections due in the first half of November.
