US President Donald Trump has said renewed military action against Iran is “highly unlikely”, signalling a possible easing of tensions after months of hostilities between Washington and Tehran, although he warned that further strikes remain an option if Iran refuses to accept a strong agreement.
Trump made the remarks in an interview with CNN on Sunday, ahead of a scheduled meeting with Qatar’s Prime Minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, at the White House on Monday.
The meeting is expected to focus on efforts to secure a lasting end to the conflict, with Qatar among regional countries attempting to mediate between the United States and Iran.
Trump said the likelihood of renewed fighting was low but stopped short of ruling out military action entirely.
“I would if necessary, but we hit them really hard. I hit them so hard. You don’t know how hard I hit them,” he told CNN, adding that his decision would depend on whether Tehran agreed to a sufficiently strong deal.
His comments follow weeks of speculation that Washington could resume military strikes against Iran after the November 3 US midterm elections.
The war, which began with US-Israeli strikes in late February, has become a major political liability for Trump, whose Republican Party suffered a significant defeat in the midterm elections, losing control of Congress.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi suggested on Sunday that diplomatic negotiations had stalled as regional mediators assessed the political implications of the US election results.
“For the past few days, there has been no more travel (by mediators), and the reason for this is the shock that the election results in the United States have caused to everyone,” Araghchi told Iranian state television.
He added that Tehran was waiting to see how Washington would respond to the election outcome before determining the next steps.
