POLITICO: US insists Iran deal still “on horizon” despite rising escalation

President Donald Trump continues to view a potential peace agreement with Iran as within reach, even as the United States carried out retaliatory strikes against Iran on Tuesday evening, June 9, according to a senior White House official.

“Nothing changes where the deal stands right now,” said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to sensitive national security matters. The official added that a deal with Tehran remains “still close,” POLITICO reports.

The US strikes came after an Iranian attack over the weekend that brought down a US military helicopter near the Strait of Hormuz. US Central Command and the White House described the response as “proportional,” marking a notable shift from earlier rhetoric suggesting far more severe consequences.

Despite the escalation, administration officials continue to frame the situation as a temporary disruption rather than a breakdown in diplomacy.

However, the two sides have been exchanging peace proposals for weeks without reaching an agreement, while Trump has repeatedly insisted that a deal is imminent. Early Tuesday, June 9, he told reporters that “we are close to a strong and powerful deal” and suggested the Strait of Hormuz could reopen within “two or three days” after a signing.

Iranian officials, meanwhile, have taken a more confrontational tone in public statements, warning the United States of further escalation if tensions continue.

“We prefer the language of diplomacy, but we speak other languages far more fluently. Break your commitments, and we’ll switch to what we speak best,” Mohammad ⁠Bagher Ghalibaf, Iran’s parliament speaker, wrote on X.

We prefer the language of diplomacy, but we speak other languages far more fluently. Break your commitments, and we'll switch to what we speak best.

You ride the horse you saddled!

— محمدباقر قالیباف | MB Ghalibaf (@mb_ghalibaf) June 9, 2026

By Jeyhun Aghazada