The strikes on Iran by the United States have stopped in recent days in order to give another opportunity for a ceasefire, but President Donald Trump said he’s not afraid to spring back into a military response.
"We are in very deep talks with Iran. If they don't work out, we will go back to very strong military action," Trump told Axios on Monday.
However, he said that there’s “not much time” for the Islamic Republic when it comes to talks.
"Either it goes fast or not at all,” he told the outlet, noting that the decision came as countries mediating talks wanted to see if talks could still be the best path forward to avoid further escalation.
"All of the people that deal with Iran asked me: 'Don't fire,’” the president told Axios.
During a gaggle on Air Force One later on Monday, the president said "the only reason they want to meet is because we’ve been hitting them very hard.”
“We’ll see what happens. I think there is a good chance that something could happen,” Trump continued. “If it doesn’t, we go back to doing what we were doing two days ago.”
Travel pool #4 - POTUS gaggles
— White House Press Pool Reports (@WHPressPool) July 27, 2026
Mid flight, POTUS took several questions from reporters for about 13 minutes.
On Iran:
POTUS said Iranian leaders requested a meeting and “the only reason they want to meet is because we’ve been hitting them very hard.”
Asked how much patience…
The U.S. and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding last month, but it was scrapped after Iran began striking cargo ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz.
In response, Trump ordered well over a week of attacks against specific targets in the country and warned that he could take the conflict to another level.
Global affairs are expected to be a top focus at the White House this week, as the president is expected to meet with both Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy this week.
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