US President Donald Trump said he was considering renewing Project Freedom while speaking to Fox News on Monday, adding that the renewal would expand beyond escorting vessels through the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump noted he has not made a final decision on the matter.
The ceasefire between the US and Iran is on “life support” after Trump “read that piece of garbage they sent us,” referring to the Iranian proposed terms, Trump said from the Oval Office on Monday.
“They think that I’ll get tired of this, or I’ll get bored, or I’ll have some pressure, but there’s no pressure, there’s no pressure at all. We’re going to have a complete victory,” he added.
The Iranian people “want to go out on the streets. They have no weapons. They have no guns. We thought the Kurds were going to give [them] weapons, but the Kurds disappointed us. The Kurds take, take, take… I’m very disappointed in the Kurds,” he continued.
Meanwhile, Trump convened a meeting with senior administration officials, including Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and top National Security Council officials, to discuss whether to resume strikes against Iran.
A US official told The Jerusalem Post that, in terms of military readiness and forces on the ground, everything is prepared should Trump decide to order renewed military operations against Iran.
An Israeli official told the Post that Israel is prepared for all scenarios, including strikes on targets inside Iran.
Earlier on Monday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a security consultation with a small group of ministers and senior defense officials.
A US official told the Post that “the American president appears to have lost patience and understands that without some form of military action against Iran, nothing will move forward.”
Additionally, Trump is expected to depart this week for a visit to China and a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Some officials within the administration believe the president will refrain from launching an attack until after returning from China.
Beijing can pressure Iran, although it remains unclear how much influence it still holds in the current post-Ali Khamenei era. A senior US official said on Sunday that the president intends to press Xi to pressure Iran into agreeing to a deal on the nuclear issue.
Iran needs US to reach ‘nuclear dust’ from facilities, Trump says
Speaking to Fox, Trump said that while a US-Iran deal has not been finalized, Iran has told him the US would need to retrieve the uranium “nuclear dust” from its facilities, because it is buried too deep for Iran to reach.
He stated that while he did not know how the US would get into the country to get the uranium, Iran would never be able to obtain a nuclear weapon.
Trump decries Iranian response to US proposal
Trump slammed the latest Iranian proposal to end the war “as totally unacceptable” on Sunday, in a Truth Social post.
“I have just read the response from Iran’s so-called “Representatives.” I don’t like it – totally unacceptable!” he wrote.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Esmaeil Baghaei, responded on Monday to US President Donald Trump’s post, asserting that Iran’s proposal to the United States was reasonable and emphasized that the US continues to make unreasonable demands.
He stated that Tehran seeks only to secure its rights and has made generous and responsible suggestions to the US.
