Trump on Iran War: ‘I Don’t Want to Negotiate Now’
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump now says he has little interest in negotiating with Iran at the moment, declaring that Tehran repeatedly breaks its promises as tensions between the two countries continue to escalate.
Speaking in an interview with Fox News' Trey Yingst, Trump blasted Iran's leadership as "evil" and accused the country's newly appointed negotiators of derailing what he claimed was a potential agreement reached just days earlier.
"Right now, I don't want to negotiate," Trump said. "Three days ago, we had a deal. I said, 'Let's not negotiate.'"
The remarks came as the United States launched new military strikes against Iranian targets and tightened its naval posture in the region following accusations that Iran violated a memorandum of understanding by targeting commercial vessels and disrupting maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz—one of the world's most strategically important shipping routes.
Trump suggested that Iran's latest actions have fundamentally altered Washington's approach, despite acknowledging that diplomatic channels remain open.
When asked when he last communicated with Iranian officials, Trump said his representatives had spoken with them "an hour ago," though he declined to provide details of those discussions.
"They want to make a deal, but every time they make a deal, they break it," Trump said. "They don't want to die. People don't want to die."
The memorandum of understanding, signed June 17 by Trump and Iran's president, was intended to halt hostilities temporarily and create a framework for broader negotiations. The 14-point agreement was viewed as an opportunity to de-escalate tensions that had threatened to spiral into a wider regional conflict.
That agreement now appears to be unraveling.
The United States this week accused Iran of violating the terms of the memorandum by attacking commercial shipping vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz. In response, Washington reimposed a naval blockade on the strategic waterway Tuesday and carried out military strikes on Iranian targets Wednesday morning—the fifth consecutive day of U.S. military action against the Islamic Republic.
Trump made clear that the strikes are far from over.
"They'll continue until I say, 'it's enough,'" he told Yingst.
The president's comments underscore a dramatic shift in tone from diplomacy to deterrence as the fragile agreement between Washington and Tehran teeters on collapse. While negotiations technically remain alive behind the scenes, Trump's message was unmistakable: military pressure—not diplomatic concessions—is now driving U.S. policy toward Iran.
With both nations trading accusations and the conflict showing signs of deepening, the prospects for a lasting agreement appear increasingly uncertain.