President Donald Trump left open the possibility of renewed U.S. strikes on Iran while saying a negotiated agreement remained possible, in remarks carried by Bloomberg Television on Oct. 25.
The comments left the timing of any attack unresolved. The White House had previously said there would be no new operations until after the U.S. midterm elections.
“There is a possibility I will,” Trump said when asked about a possible attack. “There's also a possibility we will have a nice, big, beautiful agreement.”
Bloomberg This Weekend carried the exchange alongside Wall Street Journal reporting that Trump had received briefings on options for renewed strikes. Those options included attacks on nuclear facilities and infrastructure, including bridges, and assaults on islands controlled by Iran.
Trump was leaning toward a return to major combat operations but had made no final decision, the Journal reported. His public remarks did not identify which option he favored or whether he had set conditions for ordering an attack.
Asked how far preparations had advanced, Trump declined to give details. “Do you really think I would tell you that?” he said.
His answer preserved both military action and negotiations as possibilities. He gave no date for a decision, described no terms for an agreement and made no commitment to resume strikes.
The exchange came ahead of the Nov. 3 congressional elections, when Republicans are seeking to retain control of the House of Representatives and Senate. Trump campaigned in Georgia, where his party is trying to defeat Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff.
“We are going to win the Republican House and we are going to win the Republican Senate in record numbers,” Trump said at the campaign stop.
Israel also faces an election, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu seeking to keep his job. It is his first election since the Oct. 7 attacks.
Netanyahu said in a campaign video that Iran had restarted its nuclear program. The supplied remarks gave no further details supporting that claim.
Iran's foreign minister expressed openness to diplomacy in an opinion article, provided Tehran believed Washington was approaching talks in earnest. No agreed negotiating timetable or terms emerged from the remarks carried in the broadcast.
Trump's comments did not explain how the elections would affect his decision. They also left unresolved whether the administration would maintain its previously announced pause on new operations through the midterms.
