US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the United States does not need a deal with Iran, a sharp change of tone that sent oil prices jumping, with Brent crude briefly climbing to around $96 a barrel.
“We don’t need a deal with Iran. Those days have long since passed. We’ve got their money, Hundreds of Billions of Dollars, and we’ve got their Strait!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
The statement marked a clear shift from Monday, when Trump described the war with Iran as “militarily effectively over” after meeting Qatar’s prime minister and suggested that fresh American strikes were unlikely. Secretary of State Marco Rubio backed the new line, saying there was “no need for major combat operations” because economic pressure and talks were proving effective.
Trump also told Vice President JD Vance to turn his “complete and total attention” to benefit fraud in Democrat-run cities and states, rather than international diplomacy. Vance had been at the centre of the Iran talks and joined an Oval Office meeting on Thursday morning after Trump posted his statement.
Vance helped negotiate a 14-point memorandum of understanding with Iran in June that opened a 60-day window for talks. That window passed without a deal, and the understanding fell apart weeks later when Iran attacked commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz. With Vance moved aside, special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are now the main negotiators with Iran.
Iran, meanwhile, says no talks are taking place at all. Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, has denied that negotiations are under way and said Tehran will not ship any enriched nuclear material out of the country. Iran has set out seven conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz, including an end to the US naval blockade of Iranian ports, an easing of sanctions and a halt to hostilities across the region, according to reports.
Trump also said on Thursday that he would not hesitate to order strikes on Iran again if he saw things “going the other way”, according to live coverage by the Times of Israel.
Oil markets reacted quickly. Brent crude briefly climbed to about $96 a barrel, up roughly 3.7% on the day, as traders weighed the risk that the standoff over the strait — through which a large share of the world’s oil passes — could drag on. Trump has also said the war will end “when we want to end it”, and Gulf states have told Washington they would rather see the US naval blockade stay in place.
The latest comments came hours after Iran reported an “enemy” strike on its southern port city of Sirik, near the Strait of Hormuz. Read our report on the Sirik strike here.
