US president says Iran was only ‘a few weeks’ from the bomb; says he’s ‘had it’ with negotiations while also declaring it’s ‘not too late’ for Tehran to reach a deal; Iran denies seeking talks.

US president kept his options open in case operation went awry, but with Israel racking up stunning achievements against Tehran, he sees an opportunity, Tucker Carlson be damned.

US President Donald Trump would not say Wednesday whether he had decided to order a US strike on Iran, a move that Tehran warned again would be greeted with stiff retaliation.

“I may do it, I may not do it,” Trump said in an exchange with reporters at the White House amid growing speculation the US could be on the verge of joining the Israeli offensive. “I mean, nobody knows what I’m going to do.”

Trump added that it was not “too late” for Iran to give up its nuclear program as he continues to weigh direct US involvement in Israel’s military operations aimed at crushing Tehran’s nuclear program.

Washington, June 18, 2025. (Evan Vucci/AP)

US President Donald Trump would not say Wednesday whether he had decided to order a US strike on Iran, a move that Tehran warned again would be greeted with stiff retaliation.

“I may do it, I may not do it,” Trump said in an exchange with reporters at the White House amid growing speculation the US could be on the verge of joining the Israeli offensive. “I mean, nobody knows what I’m going to do.”

Trump added that it was not “too late” for Iran to give up its nuclear program as he continues to weigh direct US involvement in Israel’s military operations aimed at crushing Tehran’s nuclear program.

Trump said Iran had even suggested sending officials to the White House for talks on Tehran’s nuclear program in a bid to end Israel’s air assault, but added that it was “very late.”

“They’ve suggested that they come to the White House. That’s, you know, courageous, but it’s, like, not easy for them to do.”

After Israel’s initial successes in its airstrikes against Iran, the focus of the campaign now hinges on one question — will he, or won’t he?

“I said it’s very late to be talking. We may meet. There’s a big difference between now and a week ago, right? Big difference,” Trump added, reiterating that what he now wants is Iran’s “unconditional surrender.”

Speaking later, Trump said Iran was only “a few weeks away” from having a nuclear weapon before Israel began striking the Islamic Republic and that he now wants “total victory,” not a ceasefire.

“I’m not looking to fight, but if it’s a choice between fighting and having a nuclear weapon, you have to do what you have to do. Maybe we won’t have to fight,” Trump posited. “Maybe it will end very quickly.”

The US is not looking for a “ceasefire,” rather “total and complete victory,” Trump said, echoing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s rhetoric.

“You know what the victory is? No nuclear weapon,” Trump added.

He also said it’s possible that the Iranian regime could fall.

“Sure, anything could happen, right?” Trump said in response to the question from a reporter in the Oval Office.

Asked if the US is planning for such a scenario, the US president claimed “we have a plan for everything,” adding that he will be meeting with his advisers in the Situation Room in an hour.

Israel on Friday launched a campaign of airstrikes in Iran to decimate the Islamic Republic’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs, which Jerusalem characterized as an imminent, existential threat. Iran has responded with deadly barrages of ballistic missiles at civilian population centers and military targets in Israel.

US President Donald Trump has not declared whether or not he will join the attack. The decision is a crucial one, as American involvement would solve the toughest nut Israel has yet to crack — the Fordo enrichment facility.

The site is entombed 90 meters under a mountain, and Israel’s conventional airborne munitions cannot come close to knocking it out. But the US has its 30,000-pound GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator bunker busters, with the B-2 heavy bombers to deliver them.

And it looks increasingly likely that Trump will join.

The American president, who campaigned on a platform of ending “forever wars” and expelling “warmongers” from the White House, has been sounding an increasingly bellicose tone toward Iran with each passing day.

The Times of Israel