Photo: White House (archive photo)

President Donald Trump replied “no” on Monday when reporters asked whether he was considering striking Iran after Tuesday’s midterm elections, while saying a deal with Tehran “could happen.”

The remarks followed his speech at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in Washington and added a new signal in favor of continued diplomacy after weeks of discussion about possible renewed attacks. They did not announce a signed agreement or a permanent renunciation of military action.

Asked whether he was considering strikes after the midterms, Trump gave the one-word response, according to the account of his remarks. He said he believed Iran wanted an agreement and reiterated his demand that it not possess a nuclear weapon.

Vance sees prospects for a negotiated settlement

Vice President JD Vance said there had been “a number of good conversations with the Iranians.”

“Look, the president and I both feel pretty good about the prospects for potentially coming to a negotiated settlement. We’re going to keep on working at it,” Vance said.

Those comments describe the administration’s assessment of negotiations, not an outcome already secured. Iranian negotiators had held a third consecutive day of talks in Doha on Sunday with Qatari mediators seeking an agreement to end the war.

Vance says any deal must include a verifiable nuclear commitment

Vice President JD Vance told reporters at Joint Base Andrews on Monday that a settlement with Iran would require a firm and verifiable commitment not to rebuild its nuclear program. He said the United States recognized Iran’s concerns about sovereignty and economic recovery, but described nuclear assurances as central to a possible agreement.

“They care a lot about their sovereignty. They care a lot about economically rebuilding. We do think that there is a pathway there, but it really does require a firm and verifiable commitment that they don’t rebuild that nuclear program,” Vance said.

Vance said no deadline had been set for an agreement and that Trump retained military and nonmilitary options. His remarks described conditions for a potential settlement, not a signed deal or a guarantee that military action would not resume. His claim that earlier American strikes had destroyed Iran’s nuclear program is the administration’s assessment, not an independently established finding.

The account of Vance’s remarks set out both the nuclear condition and the administration’s continued negotiating position.

An earlier message: no rush to restart fighting

Trump’s latest answer followed an earlier Monday interview in which he said he was “in no rush” to decide whether to restart fighting.

“One way or the other, we will do something, but there is no rush,” he said in that earlier interview. This article has been updated to lead with his subsequent public response to reporters.

Qatari mediators had circulated a draft sequence of confidence-building measures aimed at restoring direct U.S.-Iran negotiations, according to that earlier report. The draft remained a proposal awaiting feedback, not a signed agreement or proof that Washington and Tehran had accepted an implementation schedule.

Diplomacy continues, but no agreement announced

Vance had also said earlier Monday that the United States had made some progress and had set no deadline for resuming strikes. His later comments about feeling positive on the prospects for a settlement added to, rather than completed, that account of ongoing talks.

JBizNews’s earlier coverage of Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi’s comments described intensive indirect diplomatic contacts without a breakthrough.

Trump’s “no” answer is a statement of his current consideration in response to a specific question about strikes after the midterms. It should not be read as a binding promise that military action can never resume, nor as confirmation that a ceasefire or final settlement has been reached.

Earlier JBizNews coverage tracked falling oil prices as markets reacted to the prospect of diplomacy. The latest remarks leave the central question of a negotiated agreement unresolved.

JBizNews Desk | Washington
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