Trump: “All Iran’s leaders understand is bombs”

US President Donald Trump is weighing whether to authorise new military strikes against Iran or continue relying on intensified economic pressure to push Tehran toward negotiations over its nuclear program, according to five advisers familiar with his thinking.

"All [Iran's leaders] understand is bombs," Trump recently told one adviser, who relayed the comment to Axios. Despite this, advisers describe the president as cautious about escalating to direct military action. "I would describe him as frustrated but realistic," the adviser said. "He doesn't want to use force. But he's not backing down."

Within the administration, some senior officials are urging Trump to maintain the current US blockade of the Strait of Hormuz and increase sanctions before considering further military action.

Marco Rubio, who also serves as national security adviser, emphasised the administration’s focus on economic pressure. "The level of sanctions on Iran is extraordinary, the pressure on Iran is extraordinary, and I think more can be brought to bear," he said in an interview with Fox News. "I hope the rest of the world will join us in the crippling sanctions and other things that we are doing to pressure that regime into making concessions it does not want to make."

Several US officials have raised concerns about the risk of a prolonged standoff without resolution. In such a scenario, US forces could remain deployed in the region for months, with the Strait of Hormuz closed, the blockade continuing, and both sides waiting for escalation or compromise.

With midterm elections approaching in six months, one source close to the president warned that "a frozen conflict is the worst thing for Trump politically and economically."

By Tamilla Hasanova