President Donald Trump has said that if progress is made in US-Iran negotiations, the likelihood of the US launching another military strike against Iran would be very low — but that depends on whether Iran signs a “very strong agreement.” Trump made the remark on Sunday, 8 November, ahead of his closed-door meeting on Monday with Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, the chief mediator between Washington and Tehran.
Trump confirmed late on 6 November that American forces had carried out limited strikes against an Iranian air-defence system on Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz, saying an anti-aircraft device was knocked out in about 15 minutes, “maybe five”. The strikes were the first since Republicans lost control of Congress in Tuesday’s midterm elections. He has not ruled out new strikes, including at the suspected nuclear site Tehran calls Pickaxe Mountain, which Iran denies is a nuclear facility.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Sunday that negotiations with Iran had made “little progress” and that he saw no sign of an imminent breakthrough. Trump, however, told reporters on Friday that Iran wants “to make a deal very badly”, claiming the country faced 300% inflation and that its navy was gone. The International Monetary Fund forecast in October that Iran’s consumer prices would rise by an average of 78.6% in 2026, a figure that does not match the president’s claim.
Iran’s warning
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned on Sunday that Tehran will “rain down hell” if the US resumes attacks. Araghchi said Tehran has formally submitted a seven-day roadmap to end the war and is now awaiting Washington’s response. Under the plan, the United States would lift its naval blockade, waive sanctions on Iranian oil sales, release an estimated $12 billion in frozen Iranian assets and observe a ceasefire covering the region, including Lebanon and Yemen. In return, Iran would reopen the Strait of Hormuz on the sixth day and begin talks on a final deal, including on its nuclear programme, on the seventh day.
Iran has said it wants more than “paper commitments” from the US before entering a new phase of talks, and has demanded the lifting of the US blockade and sanctions before it will reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Iranian military spokesman Mohammad Akraminia reiterated that Tehran intends to restrict traffic through the corridor until Washington agrees to its diplomatic conditions, according to reports.
The war, by the reporting of the Indian Express and Al Jazeera, began on 28 February 2026, when the United States and Israel attacked Iran, and has now run for about eight months. US Central Command has completed preparations for a possible resumption of major combat operations but has received no new orders, according to a US official cited by Axios. Central Command also offered up to $20 million late on 6 November for information on Iran’s nuclear programme.
Related coverage: Trump Meets Qatar PM as Rubio Says Iran Talks Made Little Progress and Trump Says US Winning Iran War as Nuclear Deal Could Happen
