Trump: "If the War With Iran Resumes, Israel Will Join"

With the 60 days set for the ceasefire under the memorandum of understanding having expired, U.S. President Donald Trump sharpened his tone toward Iran today (Monday), making clear that if the war resumes, Washington will lead the campaign and Israel will support it. In a phone interview with Fox News, the president referred to the leadership in Tehran: "They are good poker players, but they are dead."

Trump called on the Iranian regime to surrender, while stressing that he is not setting an ultimatum at this stage: "They need to raise a white flag. I have no timetable; I am not in a rush. If the war resumes, we will lead and Israel will support." According to him, the U.S. midterm elections are also not influencing his decisions regarding Iran.

Trump again presented preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons as the central goal of his policy: "The number one goal is, and always will be, that Iran cannot be allowed to possess a nuclear weapon, in any way, shape, or form," he wrote in a post published on Truth Social.

Alongside the threats, Trump revealed that his administration is also holding direct contacts with figures in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps: "We have a back channel with the Revolutionary Guard. We are speaking directly with Revolutionary Guard figures in Iran," he confirmed to Fox News. The reporter noted that these are figures considered part of Iran's hard line, and that the remarks indicate the Trump administration is not limiting itself to contacts with the political leadership in Tehran, but is also engaging with figures who were involved in initiating attacks against U.S. forces.

Tensions around the Strait of Hormuz were also at the center of the interview. When asked about the parallel talks Iran and Oman are holding regarding control of the strait, Trump also issued a threat toward Oman. He initially said, "If they interfere with us, we will bomb them," and later replied, "If Oman interferes, we will bomb them into the dust." Trump also dismissed reports that the United States is facing ammunition shortages following the fighting: "What we have used so far was nothing."

The war in Gaza also came up during the interview with Trump, who said that Israel should stop bombing the Gaza Strip after Hamas agreed to disarm.