Trump Threatens Further Strikes on Iran as Talks Continue

Asked how he could negotiate with Iranian officials he had described as “crazy,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office: “Maybe you blow them up.”

“It’s going to end very soon, one way or the other,” he said of the conflict.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi presented Washington’s response to President Masoud Pezeshkian at a Cabinet meeting, government spokeswoman Fatemeh Mohajerani told state news agency IRNA. Tehran did not disclose its contents or say whether Washington had rejected the proposal.

The Iranian offer sought to reopen the Strait of Hormuz in return for an end to the U.S. naval blockade, sanctions relief and access to frozen Iranian assets.

Trump had publicly rejected the offer days earlier, but regional mediators have continued efforts to secure an agreement. Qatar and Pakistan have been involved in the talks. No deal has been announced.

Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio ordered the visiting Iranian delegation to leave New York after negotiations stalled, Axios reported, citing a U.S. official and another source familiar with the matter. 

Iran’s U.N. mission denied that account, saying the delegation had left as scheduled after attending the U.N. General Assembly.

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, speaking at Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia, said American forces had “destroyed” Iran’s navy, air force and defense systems. He also said its nuclear ambitions had been “crippled.”

U.S. Central Command said its forces had redirected 125 commercial vessels as of Sept. 30 to enforce the naval blockade of Iranian ports.

At a Euronews summit in Brussels, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte called U.S. military action against Iran “absolutely essential.” He said Europe lacked the military capability to take out Iran’s nuclear capabilities and should assume greater responsibility for security in the Red Sea.

Oil prices were little changed in early Asian trading on Oct. 1. Brent crude futures rose 12 cents to $98.15 a barrel at 0045 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate fell 7 cents to $90.35, Reuters reported.