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World · The United States and Iran

Trump says returning to war with Iran is highly unlikely if talks progress

Trump says US forces are ready with three aircraft carriers, while Iran's foreign minister warns Tehran will hit back hard if attacks resume.

Donald Trump in 2025
Donald Trump in 2025. Photo: Daniel Torok, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
24 news outlets reported this
Liberal9 outletsTrump's threats, Iran's counter-threats, and a stalemateCenter8 outletsTrump downplays renewed strikes while keeping forces readyConservative7 outletsTrump's strong hand against a taunting Tehran
ABRAnews EditorialPublished 1 min read
Overview

Speaking to CNN by phone on Sunday, President Donald Trump said it is "highly unlikely" he will have to order the US back to war with Iran, provided discussions over Tehran's nuclear activities and the reopening of the continue to advance. "It depends on whether or not they sign a very strong agreement," he said. He said the US has three aircraft carriers in the region, "fully locked and loaded," and 38 bridges in Iran it could knock down in "literally one hour."

The war, now eight months old, is in a stalemate with little fighting or diplomatic progress. Iran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, wrote on X on Sunday that Tehran will "rain down hell" if the US resumes attacks. He also said mediators have not traveled since Tuesday's US midterm elections, in which Republicans lost their majorities in Congress.

Qatar, a mediator, denied on Saturday that talks had failed. Reuters cited a senior Iranian official saying Tehran sent a nuclear proposal to Washington through Qatar, with further talks dependent on the US meeting its demands. The US keeps a blockade around Iran.

Key figures
  • three aircraft carriersin the region, by Trump's accountYahoo News
  • 38 bridgesin Iran the US could knock down in an hour, Trump saysYahoo News
  • 301% inflationin Iran, as Trump cites itYahoo News
  • 10% of its missile capacitywhat Iran retains, Trump saysYahoo News
  • 15% of its drone capabilitieswhat Iran retains, Trump saysYahoo News

Three sides of the story

9Liberal8Center7Conservative

24 news outlets reported this

Tap a color or swipe sideways to switch sides.

Liberal9 outlets

Trump's threats, Iran's counter-threats, and a stalemate

Yahoo News, running a CNN report, leads with Trump saying five times that returning to war is "highly unlikely," then lays out his threats: three aircraft carriers, 38 bridges that "they'll all be down," and Iranian air defenses he says are gone. It adds that Trump would rather not destroy infrastructure since "it'll take 10 years to rebuild," and that a US reward for information on Iran's nuclear program and a new task force signal Washington is stepping up pressure. Al Jazeera English leads with Iran's side: Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi's warning that Tehran will "rain down hell," and a Revolutionary Guard adviser's promise of a "devastating and severe" response.

An earlier Al Jazeera explainer describes Trump shifting between threats and talk of progress. It quotes Hassan Ahmadian, a University of Tehran associate professor, who says "None of this means he won't attack Iran," and says Iran's strategy of attacking bases in neighbouring Gulf countries has narrowed Trump's options.

Center8 outlets

Trump downplays renewed strikes while keeping forces ready

UPI opens with Trump telling CNN an attack is "highly unlikely" if talks progress, then gives his "locked and loaded" carriers line and notes Trump's statement that power plants and bridges have been identified as possible targets. It describes a stalemate in which Iranian hardliners read the midterm results as a chance for concessions. Deutsche Welle frames it as Trump trying to "downplay fears" of a new campaign while restating the US is "ready."

It adds background: Trump ordered the attack in late February, a June memorandum signed in Islamabad expired in August, and Iran has repeatedly rejected Trump's account. DW quotes Araghchi calling the election a "shock" and reports Qatar's denial that talks have failed. The Hill, citing CNN, reports Trump called renewed attacks "highly unlikely" if talks show progress.

Conservative7 outlets

Trump's strong hand against a taunting Tehran

The New York Post leads with Trump saying a return to war is "highly unlikely" while talks make progress, quoting his "failing nation" remarks. It adds that Trump had signaled he was unlikely to resume the campaign until after the midterms but now conveys optimism about negotiations, and that he keeps a blockade around Iran to cripple it economically. Fox News leads with Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei taunting Americans after the midterms, writing that "the process of the US's collapse has accelerated."

A White House spokesperson tells Fox the US is "in a very strong position," that things will go "the easy way or the hard way," and that Trump "holds all the cards." Fox quotes Middle East experts. Navid Mohebbi, a former State Department Persian media analyst, says Trump "should finish the job" and cites exit polls in which only 4% of voters named foreign policy as the top issue.

What a side did not mention
All sources: 47 articles from 24 outlets

Liberal (18)

Center (15)

Conservative (14)

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Strait of Hormuz

The narrow sea passage between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula through which tankers leave the Persian Gulf. About a fifth of the world's oil normally passes through it, so any threat there moves fuel prices worldwide.

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