Trump pauses Iran strikes as Gulf allies push for more time

Washington,UPDATED: Aug 3, 2026 10:10 IST

US President Donald Trump has again threatened a major escalation in the war with Iran, only to pull back at the last moment and say diplomacy should get more time. After warning that American forces could hit Iran "very hard", Trump said late on Saturday that there were signs of progress towards an agreement and he was pausing plans for new large strikes.

The latest turn fits a pattern seen through the five-month-old war. Trump has repeatedly warned Tehran that he could order US forces to "obliterate" power plants or seize important parts of its oil sector if Iran does not accept US terms, before stepping back and saying talks are still possible. Critics say the approach looks erratic and may show that military pressure alone may not be enough to force Iran to end a conflict that has dragged on for months after Trump had earlier played it down as a short operation.

The latest episode began on Friday when Trump, flanked by his Cabinet, said he was "losing faith" in negotiations with Iran and warned that the US military "will be hitting them very hard". Hours later, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt added to the speculation with a statement saying, "Iran will continue to pay until they come to the table in, what President Trump deems, a meaningful way." By late Saturday night, however, Trump wrote on social media that there were signs of progress and that he was calling off new, massive strikes for the time being.

On Sunday, Trump said requests for more time from unnamed Iranian officials and leaders in Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates had helped shape his decision. "It would have been disastrous for them. And they didn't want us to do it," Trump said of Iran while speaking to reporters as he returned to Washington from his New Jersey golf club. "And frankly, Saudi Arabia didn't want it either. They thought that a deal is imminent."

Trump's strategy has been to use pressure and uncertainty to force movement in negotiations, a style he has used in business and politics. But Iran appears to believe it can withstand more pain than Washington expects. Even as Trump has welcomed the US military's attacks on layers of Tehran's leadership and the damage caused to Iran's air force and navy, Iran is betting it can outlast him as the US faces lower munitions stockpiles and an unpopular war ahead of November's midterm elections.

Critics say Trump's hesitation may also reflect a recognition within his administration that US military power may not by itself make Iran back down. Senator Mark Kelly, a Democrat from Arizona who sits on the Senate Armed Services Committee, told CBS News' "Face the Nation": "I think what we're seeing here is a president who has an approach that's just rather erratic. At this point, he's trying to get us back to February. And I think if he could - if he had a big reset button he could hit - he would certainly take that option."

There have been several such moments during the conflict. In early April, the US and Iran agreed to a two-week ceasefire less than two hours before a deadline Trump had set for Tehran to surrender or face attacks on bridges and power plants, strikes he said would mean "a whole civilization will die". On May 18, after days of threats, Trump said he was holding off a major strike because "serious negotiations" were under way, and he credited Gulf allies with urging restraint. In June, he threatened to hit Iran "VERY HARD" and seize its energy base on Kharg Island to "assume total control of their Oil and Gas Markets", before later saying the strikes were off because peace talks with senior Iranian leaders had advanced. Left unsaid by Trump was that such a move would require US troops on the ground in Iran, a politically risky step for a president who campaigned against foreign entanglements and criticised earlier administrations for long wars.

Trump also suggested that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman played an important role in the latest reversal. The two spoke by phone on Saturday before Trump announced he was halting strikes that he later said would have been among the biggest US operations since World War II. According to a person briefed on the call, who was not authorised to speak publicly and requested anonymity, the crown prince warned that a wider conflict could badly affect the global economy if Tehran responded by targeting US allies in the Gulf. The person said Saudi officials have told the Trump administration that the kingdom, Qatar and the UAE are well placed to defend themselves against possible Iranian attacks, but Kuwait could be more exposed to attacks by Iran-backed militias in Iraq.

Trump has said the November midterm elections are not shaping his approach, but the politics of the war are plainly on the minds of Republicans. An Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll published last week found that about two-thirds of US adults say the war, which began on February 28, has not been worthwhile. That includes large majorities of Democrats and independents, along with about 37 per cent of Republicans. Senator John Kennedy, one of Trump's strong allies on Capitol Hill, said on NBC's "Meet the Press" that Washington had lost sight of the destruction the US military had already inflicted on Iran. Even so, he said further escalation could push up already high energy prices and bring "a lot of inflation for the American people". Kennedy said tighter sanctions and action against Iran's nuclear programme, rather than a wider war, might be the better course for now. "They're all hellish choices," he said. "But for the moment I'd maintain the status quo."

For now, Trump has once again moved from the threat of heavy military action to a pause in the hope of a deal, after appeals from Iran and Gulf allies and amid growing questions over the cost, risks and political impact of a deeper conflict.

With PTI Inputs

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