As Iran continues to resist U.S. demands in negotiations, President Donald Trump is weighing the possibility of military action, according to new reporting.
Earlier this month, Trump privately considered a strike as Iran intensified its crackdown on anti-government protests. Before the crackdown escalated, Trump warned Iranian leaders against carrying out mass killings of demonstrators, and he has claimed his pressure helped prevent executions of many of those arrested.
The USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group is now operating in the Middle East, giving the White House additional military options that were not available earlier in the month, CNN noted.
In a Truth Social post on Wednesday, Trump again urged Iran to reach an agreement and issued a stark warning:
“A massive Armada is heading to Iran. It is moving quickly, with great power, enthusiasm, and purpose. It is a larger fleet, headed by the great Aircraft Carrier Abraham Lincoln, than that sent to Venezuela. Like with Venezuela, it is, ready, willing, and able to rapidly fulfill its mission, with speed and violence, if necessary,” Trump wrote.
“Hopefully Iran will quickly “Come to the Table” and negotiate a fair and equitable deal – NO NUCLEAR WEAPONS – one that is good for all parties. Time is running out, it is truly of the essence!”
“As I told Iran once before, MAKE A DEAL! They didn’t, and there was ‘Operation Midnight Hammer,’ a major destruction of Iran. The next attack will be far worse! Don’t make that happen again,” he wrote, referring to the June attack on Iran’s nuclear sites.
The New York Times reported that U.S. negotiators are seeking a permanent ban on Iranian uranium enrichment, the surrender of Iran’s current stockpile, restrictions on the number and range of Iranian ballistic missiles, and an end to Iranian support for proxy groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah.
Iran’s parliamentary speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, rejected the terms attributed to negotiator Steve Witkoff, calling them unacceptable.
“What Witkoff is saying would essentially be Iran surrendering,” he said. “This translates into disarming yourself so we could strike you when we want.”
Iranian Rear Adm. Ali Shamkhani also warned that a U.S. strike on Iran would prompt retaliation against Israel.
Despite Tehran’s public posture, intelligence assessments cited by The New York Times said Iran’s grip on power may be at its weakest since the 1979 revolution, pointing to broad public dissatisfaction fueled largely by economic strain.
CNN reported that Trump recently said, “It’s time to look for new leadership in Iran.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio echoed that assessment during congressional testimony on Wednesday, saying the Iranian regime “is probably weaker than has ever been,” while also cautioning that “no one knows” what would follow if the current government fell.
Against that backdrop, Reuters reported that Trump wants to create conditions that could enable “regime change” in Iran, citing unnamed sources. The report said he has examined options to target commanders and institutions Washington blames for violence against protesters—moves intended, according to Reuters, to bolster protest momentum and weaken the state’s control.
