Trump Weighs Iran Talks as Strike Plans Advance

Donald Trump said he approved JD Vance’s outreach to Iranian authorities while Washington weighs a possible week-long military campaign against Tehran after the November 3 midterm elections. The diplomatic channel is open. So are preparations for strikes on Iranian leadership, energy infrastructure and nuclear facilities.

Trump described Vance’s contact as an effort to get medical supplies to people in need, and denied directing him to restart peace negotiations. “They need help with medical supplies and various things. He asked me what I thought. I said, ‘if you want to do that, that’s OK,’” Trump told reporters Wednesday. He added: “Basically, it’s getting supplies in to help people that are not well.”

But reports from The Wall Street Journal and Axios describe a broader exchange. The Wall Street Journal reported that Vance sent a letter to Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, seeking to restart negotiations. Axios, citing a U.S. official, reported that Vance proposed contacting Rezaei, who has direct access to Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei. “The President was enthusiastic about the letter,” the official told Axios.

Talks Under the Strike Shadow

Vance’s letter stressed that negotiations aimed at preventing further U.S. military strikes would require discussion of Iran’s nuclear program, Axios reported. The Wall Street Journal said the outreach explored a possible framework, not a detailed peace proposal. Vance had privately expressed reservations about prolonging the war, which began in February, while publicly supporting the U.S. military campaign, the newspaper reported. His earlier negotiations with Iranian representatives produced no lasting agreement.

Washington is demanding nuclear concessions before economic relief. Tehran wants the United States to lift its naval blockade, release frozen Iranian funds and allow oil exports before negotiations move forward. That is the machinery of state bargaining: access to money, trade and essential supplies sits alongside demands over nuclear oversight and the threat of military force.

Regional mediators led by Qatar, with support from Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Turkey, are working to restart negotiations, Axios reported. Qatari negotiator Ali al-Thawadi visited Tehran earlier this week to discuss possible terms. One proposal would allow International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors to visit Iranian nuclear facilities damaged during U.S. and Israeli attacks in exchange for limited sanctions relief. It could include waivers for oil exports and release of some frozen funds to buy food and other humanitarian supplies.

“There is some movement. We are waiting for the Iranian response,” a regional source familiar with the discussions told Axios. The source said Iran could initially retain its enriched uranium while Washington secured steps toward renewed nuclear oversight. A senior Iranian official told Reuters that Qatar had offered ideas, not a formal peace proposal, and that Tehran considered them unacceptable. The official said Iran would show no flexibility on the nuclear issue.

The Apparatus Stays Ready

Qatari mediators also presented Iran with ideas for a seven-day process, Reuters reported, citing an official briefed on the negotiations. The draft calls for daily confidence-building measures and could begin early next week; several countries would act as guarantors. Iran was expected to respond by the end of the week.

Meanwhile, U.S. and Israeli officials are preparing for possible renewed military action after the elections, according to Axios and The Wall Street Journal. Axios reported that an operation could involve a week of extensive strikes against Iranian leadership, energy infrastructure, nuclear facilities and other targets. Israeli military chief Eyal Zamir spoke with U.S. Central Command chief Admiral Brad Cooper on Monday to coordinate preparations, the report said.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Washington warned several Persian Gulf countries to prepare for a possible short, intense campaign. The U.S. military has been strengthening regional missile defenses, relocating personnel from vulnerable bases and replenishing munitions; additional naval and air forces are also being prepared. Trump has not made a final decision.

Trump told Axios, “We need to finish the job — either through a deal or another way — we will find out if negotiations can succeed.” Saudi officials have urged Washington to allow more time for talks before deciding on further strikes. The negotiations proceed through mediators; the military preparations proceed alongside them.