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U.S. President Trump said Sunday that he would hold off on a fresh military strike against Iran, saying the U.S. had agreed to a request from Iran and other Middle Eastern countries to allow time to finalize what he described as the "perimeters of a deal" to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and end Iran's nuclear program.
"The U.S.A. is locked and loaded and ready to go against the Islamic Republic of Iran, at levels of Military Terror, Strength, and Power not seen since World War II," Trump wrote on Truth Social.
"Despite this, we have just been asked by Iran, and other Middle Eastern countries to hold off any attack in that the perimeters of a deal has been agreed to. This would include the Immediate, Complete, and Total opening of the Hormuz Strait and an end to Iran's nuclear threat. Based on this request, I have agreed, for the future benefit of the World and, likewise, the survival of a successful and prosperous Iran, to cancel the attack, subject to being able to rapidly make a deal," he said, adding, "The Country of Israel joins me in this commitment. Get to work, everybody, and get it done."
Trump's post came days after he had warned the U.S. would hit Iran "very hard," raising the prospect of a fresh round of strikes intended to force Tehran back to the negotiating table.
Iran did not offer any immediate official reaction to the announcement.
According to Axios, citing two U.S. officials and a third source with knowledge of the matter, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman spoke to Trump by phone Saturday and expressed concern about his plans for a large-scale new strike on Iran.
"The Saudis expressed concern and asked for clarity about the plan of action," one U.S. official told Axios. A second source said MBS urged Trump to de-escalate and refrain from launching the strikes.
Axios reported that Trump had been seriously considering strikes on Iranian energy targets in response to Iran's missile strike on a U.S. base in Jordan and its continued disruption of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, though he had not yet issued final orders as of the report.
Axios reported that other regional powers, Qatar, the UAE, Türkiye and Pakistan, were also pressing both the U.S. and Iran to de-escalate.
Axios also reported that Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman met with Trump on Wednesday, a meeting added to his itinerary after he told Vice President JD Vance that Saudi Arabia favored de-escalation with Iran, according to a source familiar with the matter, a message Axios noted came despite a joint U.S.-Saudi strike against pro-Iranian militias in Iraq earlier in the week.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi held separate phone calls Saturday with senior Turkish, Pakistani and Saudi officials, warning against any U.S. attack.
Speaking with Pakistan's army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, a key mediator between Washington and Tehran, and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, Araghchi said Iran would respond decisively to any "aggression" and discussed what he called the consequences of "destabilizing actions" by the U.S.
Araghchi later told Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan that "any hostile action by the U.S. or Israel, or participation or cooperation by regional countries in such actions, would be met with a decisive and proportionate response from Iran's powerful armed forces," according to Araghchi's Telegram statement.
Araghchi's calls came hours after Kuwait's army said it had destroyed hostile drones launched by Iran targeting several vital facilities, according to Reuters.
According to Axios, Qatari mediators held separate talks Saturday with Araghchi, White House envoy Steve Witkoff, and Omani officials in an effort to secure an agreement on reopening the Strait of Hormuz.
A source with knowledge of the discussions told Axios the talks had made progress, though it remained unclear whether that would be enough to defuse the crisis.
The U.S. and Israel first attacked Iran on Feb. 28, launching a war Trump has said was aimed at destroying Tehran's missile capabilities, preventing it from obtaining a nuclear weapon, and ending its support for allied armed groups, which noted the war's stated goals and timelines have repeatedly shifted and that an earlier mid-June agreement to halt fighting collapsed within weeks.
Iran retaliated by largely closing the Strait of Hormuz, sending global oil prices soaring.
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