President Donald Trump said on Sunday that he was “highly unlikely” to order fresh attacks on Iran as long as talks to end the eight-month conflict keep making progress, in his clearest signal yet that the war may stay frozen. He repeated the phrase five times during a 20-minute phone interview with CNN’s Jim Sciutto.
“It depends on whether or not they sign a very strong agreement,” Trump said. “The answer is, highly unlikely it’s going to be necessary.” He added: “They want to make a deal so badly.”
The reassurance came with a warning. Trump said the United States had identified infrastructure targets inside Iran, including 38 bridges “that we can knock down in literally one hour”. He said American forces were ready if he gave the order, noting that three aircraft carriers were in the region.
The tone marked a shift from days earlier, when Trump said he would “soon” decide whether to resume all-out war, after hinting at renewed major attacks once the US midterm elections were over. No large-scale operation has followed.
His top diplomat struck a more cautious note. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Sunday that negotiations with Iran had made “little progress” and that he saw no imminent breakthrough. Trump is due to meet Qatar’s prime minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, at the White House on Monday; Qatar has mediated between Washington and Tehran.
Markets took the remarks as a sign of easing tensions. Oil fell at Monday’s open, with Brent crude down 0.64% to $97.67 a barrel and US crude down 0.40% to $90.51, even as both countries reported shipping had been hit in or near the Strait of Hormuz. Iran said blasts heard in the strait were not American attacks.
Trump also posted on Truth Social on Sunday afternoon that “Task Force Iron Gate is in full force and effect”, the US operation aimed at choking off Iran’s land and Caspian supply routes.
Some of Trump’s claims in the interview were not independently verified. He said Iran had 301% inflation, that its air defences had been destroyed, and that it retained only 10% of its missile capacity and 15% of its drone capability. CNN reported the figures as the president’s own statements, and it did not publish the exact wording of the question it asked him, so the account of the interview rests on CNN as the single original source.
Sources: Reuters, “Trump says he is unlikely to order Iran attack if talks progress, CNN reports” (https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/trump-says-he-is-unlikely-order-iran-attack-if-talks-progress-cnn-reports-2026-11-08/); CNN, “Trump says renewed attacks on Iran ‘highly unlikely’ if talks show progress” (https://www.cnn.com/2026/11/08/politics/trump-interview-on-iran); Reuters, “Oil falls on open as Trump says fresh Iran attacks ‘unlikely'” (https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/oil-falls-open-trump-says-fresh-iran-attacks-unlikely-2026-11-08/).
