President Donald Trump canceled an expected round of U.S. airstrikes against Iran late Saturday after he said a rough framework of a peace deal had been reached.
Trump said the U.S. military was “locked and loaded and ready to go” in the pending attack against Tehran but that he decided against it after speaking with the leaders of Gulf states.
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“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,” he posted on Truth Social. “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,” the president wrote. “The Country of Israel joins me in this commitment. Get to work, everybody, and get it DONE.”
The United States and Israel were reportedly preparing to bomb the Islamic Republic, specifically targeting its energy infrastructure, as soon as this weekend in order to force the nation to the negotiating table. The harsh bombing campaign could have lasted several days.
If the military operation moved forward, Israel would have resumed fighting, and Iran would have inevitably targeted the Jewish state with ballistic missile attacks.
Gen. Alexus Grynkewich, the commander of U.S. European Command, warned the Pentagon that he lacked sufficient naval resources to protect Israel and other allies in the Middle East from incoming attacks by Iran and its terrorist proxies in the region, according to the Washington Post. The war has put a toll on America’s military arsenal as the Strait of Hormuz remains in chaos.
Speaking during the televised Cabinet meeting at Camp David on Friday, Trump vowed to hit Tehran “very hard” to the point that Iranian officials would relent and say, “We just can’t take it anymore.”
Saudi Arabia was one of the nations that convinced Trump not to go through with the latest strikes.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, according to the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in speaking with Trump, “stressed the need to prioritize dialogue to reduce escalation and the importance of making every possible effort to achieve calm that paves the way for diplomatic solutions, preserves the region’s security and stability, and prevents a wider conflict whose repercussions would affect regional and international security and stability.”
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It remains to be seen if the new peace deal teased by Trump will come to fruition in the way he wants.
A 14-point memorandum of understanding was signed by both sides previously, but that interim peace agreement collapsed due to renewed military hostilities and violations of the ceasefire. Iran started attacking commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz last month, prompting the U.S. to launch retaliatory airstrikes.
