A president who has spent months insisting the war is won now says the nation no longer needs to bargain, while across the water a government that has held its ground for just as long refuses to sit down until its own list of demands is honored. Between those two postures lies a stalemate that has outlasted major combat, where ships burn in contested waters and the question of enriched uranium remains a line neither side will cross. History tends to remember such moments not for their declarations but for whether anyone found a door in the wall.
Trump says 'we don't need a deal with Iran' as Tehran holds to seven conditions and ship attacks continue
Iranian tankers and crews have been struck by sea mines east of the Strait of Hormuz, and two Iranian men were convicted of plotting against journalists in London.
"We've got their money, and we've got their Strait!"
Mark
Trump says the U.S. doesn't need a deal. Why does that matter?
Mimi
It's a public step back from negotiation, while Iran says it won't even set an agenda until its seven conditions are met. Neither side is signaling movement.
Luke
But the post came with no context. "Hundreds of Billions" is his figure, and CBS says only that he may mean frozen assets. That's unverified.
Mark
What about control of the Strait?
Mimi
Iran says tankers are hitting mines east of Hormuz. The U.S. says the southern lanes are safe and open.
Luke
Those are competing claims. The tankers are unidentified, and the Iranian army statement is the only account of what happened.
Mark
And the Russia mediation story?
Mimi
Qalibaf says the Americans asked Putin to get Iran to talk directly.
Luke
That's one side's claim. The White House didn't directly answer, and Putin and the envoys didn't mention Iran after meeting. It's unconfirmed.
Mark
What about the NPT call?
Mimi
It's the Assembly of Experts urging leaders to consider leaving. It carries weight, but the supreme leader has the final say.
Luke
Right, and it's a call to consider, not a decision.
Il Polso
- Trump declares he 'doesn't need a deal' with Iran, claiming victory while holding Iranian funds and what he calls the Strait of Hormuz.
- Tehran refuses to negotiate until seven conditions are met, and Secretary Rubio dismisses them as unacceptable.
- Iran's Assembly of Experts urges the leadership to consider leaving the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, raising the stakes for any diplomacy.
- Two more tankers hit mines and catch fire east of Hormuz, with Iran blaming the 'lying U.S. president' and shipowners who trusted him.
- Envoys Witkoff and Kushner meet Putin on Ukraine without raising Iran, leaving any back-channel path uncertain as talks drift.
A president who has spent months insisting the war is won now says the nation no longer needs to bargain, while across the water a government that has held its ground for just as long refuses to sit down until its own list of demands is honored. Between those two postures lies a stalemate that has outlasted major combat, where ships burn in contested waters and the question of enriched uranium remains a line neither side will cross. History tends to remember such moments not for their declarations but for whether anyone found a door in the wall.
On Thursday, President Trump posted on Truth Social that the United States no longer needs a peace deal with Iran. He wrote that the days of negotiating had long passed, pointing to what he called hundreds of billions of dollars in Iranian money and control of the Strait. The post offered no further explanation, and CBS News noted he may have been referring to frozen Iranian assets. It followed a Veterans Day address in which he again declared victory while admitting the conflict was not over, only a question of when it would end.
Major combat ended over the summer, but the standoff that began with U.S. strikes in February has dragged on. Iran continues to strike ships in the Strait of Hormuz, keeping global energy markets nervous, and claims it has rebuilt its military during the lull. Tehran's position has not budged. Its security officials say they will set the terms of any talks only after seven conditions are accepted, and Rubio has called those conditions unacceptable. Iran's Supreme National Security Council has also vowed that not a single particle of enriched uranium will leave the country, which cuts against a central American aim.
At sea, Iran's army reported that two more tankers struck mines and caught fire in a zone it calls prohibited, saying the ships had ignored warnings and switched off their radar. Meanwhile, Iran's Assembly of Experts urged leaders to consider withdrawing from the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, calling it an unavoidable necessity for defense and deterrence. A possible channel exists: Iran's chief negotiator says Americans in Moscow asked Putin to push Tehran toward direct talks, though the White House has not confirmed it, and envoys who met Putin on Ukraine did not mention Iran afterward.
Elsewhere, two men were convicted in London of spying on Iran International journalists, with sentencing set for December. The coming weeks will show whether the treaty push gains momentum and whether the tanker strikes continue, since either could decide whether any talks ever begin.
On Thursday, President Trump posted on Truth Social that the United States does not need a peace deal with Iran. "Those days have long since passed," he wrote, adding: "We've got their money, Hundreds of Billions of Dollars, and we've got their Strait!" The post was mostly about U.S. politics and came without further explanation. CBS News noted he may have been referring to frozen Iranian financial assets.
The post followed a Veterans Day address in which Trump again declared victory in the war, while conceding it was not finished. He said it was "just a question of when we want to end it." Major combat ended over the summer. The U.S. military attacks on Iran began in February, and since then the standoff has dragged on. Iran keeps attacking ships in the Strait of Hormuz, which keeps pressure on global energy markets, and it claims to have rebuilt its military and defense industrial capacity during the stalemate.
Tehran's position has not moved. A senior Iranian security official, identified in the reporting as the head of the Basij paramilitary force, told state news agency IRNA that Iran will "decide on the manner and agenda of any negotiations" only after its seven conditions are fulfilled and accepted. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has called those conditions "unacceptable." On Wednesday, the head of Iran's Supreme National Security Council vowed that not "even a single particle of enriched nuclear material" would leave the country. That undercuts the long-standing U.S. goal of a deal in which Iran gives up its enriched uranium.
Iran's chief negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, told Al Jazeera that Americans visiting Moscow asked Vladimir Putin to urge Iran into direct talks. The White House did not directly answer an Associated Press query on the claim. Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Trump's envoys, met Putin on Thursday about the war in Ukraine, and neither Putin nor the envoys mentioned Iran afterward. The pair are due to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Dublin.
At sea, Iran's army said two more "rogue oil tankers" hit mines and caught fire Thursday afternoon in what it called a prohibited and unsafe area east of the Strait of Hormuz. It said the ships ignored warnings and switched off their radar, a tactic used on southern lanes that the Trump administration and U.S. military say are safe and open. The army blamed "the lying U.S. president" first, then the owners who trusted him. The tankers were not identified.
Iran's Assembly of Experts, which chooses the supreme leader and influences policy, urged the leadership to consider withdrawing from the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, citing the need to revise defense doctrine and establish deterrence. It called the step an "unavoidable necessity," according to Tasnim and Press TV. Iran ratified the treaty before the 1978 revolution and has long denied seeking nuclear weapons, often pointing to that commitment. Separately, foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei warned that any state taking part in the "US-Israeli military aggression," including by deploying naval forces or logistical support, would bear full responsibility.
Elsewhere, the U.N. Security Council unanimously condemned Houthi escalation in Yemen and against Saudi Arabia, and extended sanctions on blacklisted Houthis until Nov. 14, 2027. In London, Mostafa Sepahvand, 41, and Farhad Javadi Manesh, 46, were convicted of conduct likely to assist the IRGC after spying on Iran International journalists. A third defendant was acquitted. They will be sentenced at the Old Bailey on Dec. 17. U.S. Soccer also pulled its boys' Under-17 World Cup team from Qatar over security concerns.
Watch whether the Assembly of Experts' NPT push gains traction, and whether tanker strikes continue, since both could shape any talks.
Citazioni salienti
We've got their money, Hundreds of Billions of Dollars, and we've got their Strait!— President Trump, on Truth Social
Iran would not allow removal of even a single particle of enriched nuclear material from the country.— Head of Iran's Supreme National Security Council
Vuoi la storia completa?
Leggi l'originale su CBS News ↗