Donald Trump has backed out of another planned strike against Iran, merely hours after warning he would hit the country “very hard” and eventually seize control of the country’s oil and gas industry.
In another round of president-induced whiplash, Trump announced his latest decision on Thursday afternoon, citing progress towards a deal.
“Based on the fact that discussions with the Islamic Republic of Iran have been brought to the highest level of Iranian leadership and approved, I have, as President of the United States of America, cancelled the scheduled strikes and bombings against Iran this evening,” he wrote on Truth Social.
“The Naval Blockade will remain in full force and effect until this Transaction is finalized — Time and place of the signing to be announced shortly,” he added.
The S&P 500 surged immediately after the post was made. But the announcement came about five hours after Trump had declared he would hit Iran “VERY HARD TONIGHT” and at some point take “total control” of the country’s oil and gas industry.
Such a move would involve seizing Kharg Island and other Iranian oil infrastructure, which could involve placing American boots on the ground—a move that would have huge political implications ahead of the midterm elections in November.
But many remained skeptical of what might happen next in a war that still has no clear endgame.
“This has been the most screwed up set of negotiations I’ve ever seen when it comes to trying to end a war,” former Obama Defense Secretary and CIA director Leon Panetta told CNN.
“You can’t trust anything that the president says, and you can’t trust anything that the regime says at this point. This whole negotiation has turned into a kabuki dance at this stage, and we’re not quite sure who’s up and who’s down.”
Trump’s earlier threats to escalate against Iran followed a series of strikes between the two countries after the downing of a U.S. military helicopter and Trump’s stated frustration with peace talks.
In response to those threats, Iran’s Parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, a key figure in U.S.-Iran negotiations, had warned that “wrong strategies and impulsive decisions will reset the entire board for the worse, explode energy infrastructure and markets and create an endless quagmire that you will be stuck in for years.”
“You will see a different Iran,” he wrote on X.
It is not known yet whether Iran will finally seal some sort of a deal, even though, according to Trump, discussions and final points have been, in both concept and great detail, approved by all parties involved, including the United States, Israel, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Turkey, Pakistan, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan, Egypt, and others.
However during an Oval Office event later on Thursday, Trump said that Vice President JD Vance would attend a planned US-Iran deal signing event that was likely to take place in Europe this weekend.
