President Donald Trump on Thursday canceled an upcoming round of U.S. military strikes against Iran, claiming that talks with the Islamic Republic “have been brought to the highest level of Iranian leadership and approved.”
Iranian state media outlet Fars, however, reported soon after Trump’s announcement that Tehran has not approved any text for an initial memorandum of understanding with the U.S.
Trump’s Truth Social post announcing the canceled strikes was a dramatic reversal from hours earlier, when he warned that the U.S. would hit Iran “very hard tonight” and soon take over Iran’s oil infrastructure, including Kharg Island.
“Discussions and final points have been, in both concept and great detail, approved by all parties involved,” including Israel and nine other regional powers, Trump wrote in the latest post. But that list didn’t include Iran or Lebanon, which Israel has continued to strike.
Trump — who has claimed for months that a peace deal with Iran is close at hand, only for none to emerge — also indicated that the purported agreement has yet to be made official, leaving it unclear whether an actual deal exists for the warring countries to review.
The U.S. Naval blockade of Iranian ports in the Gulf of Oman will “remain in full force and effect until this Transaction is finalized,” Trump wrote.
Stock indexes nevertheless soared, and oil prices sank, right after Trump’s announcement, following a pattern of trading on the president’s claims that has repeated numerous times since the war began Feb. 28. Trump has said more than 30 times that a deal to end the war was close.
“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. 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. 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.”
The president’s latest signal of a forthcoming deal came just as the U.S.-Iran war appeared to be returning to full-scale conflict, further undermining a threadbare ceasefire and seeming to preclude any prospect of a swift peace.
“The United States will be hitting Iran (Whose Navy, Air Force, Radar, Anti Aircraft, and all other forms of Defense, together with most of its offensive capability, are GONE!), VERY HARD TONIGHT,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post on Thursday morning.
“At some point in the not too distant future, we will be taking Kharg Island, and other oil infrastructure points, and assume total control of their Oil and Gas Markets,” he wrote.
That threat followed two days of U.S. strikes, which began after Trump accused Iran of shooting down a U.S. Army helicopter as it patrolled over the Strait of Hormuz on Monday evening.
The U.S. launched strikes in retaliation on Tuesday, prompting a military response from Iran. The U.S. fired more missiles on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Iranian state media reported earlier Thursday that Elon Musk’s companies in the Middle East, including SpaceX’s Starlink internet service, would be viewed as military targets.
