US President Donald Trump has indicated that Washington is under no immediate pressure to reopen negotiations with Iran, even as the conflict enters its sixth month and diplomatic efforts intensify across the region.
Trump’s comments come as the United States increasingly relies on sanctions and economic restrictions to pressure Tehran, while Qatar and Pakistan continue to explore diplomatic options aimed at reducing the confrontation and easing restrictions on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Trump said the United States was not seeking discussions with Iranian officials, arguing that the pressure on Tehran had significantly weakened its leadership, military and economy.
“We don’t want to speak to them. We’re not looking to meet or anything,” Trump said.
He also claimed that Iran was struggling to finance its military and had limited remaining capacity.
The position comes six months after the start of a conflict that Trump had initially suggested would be relatively brief. The prolonged fighting has complicated his earlier campaign position of avoiding extended US involvement in Middle Eastern wars and has raised questions about how Washington intends to bring the confrontation to an end.
Rather than immediately pursuing another military escalation, the Trump administration has shifted greater emphasis towards economic warfare. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent this week announced a new pressure campaign, warning countries and businesses that continue commercial dealings with Tehran that they could eventually face US restrictions.
The administration has not, however, immediately imposed broad secondary sanctions on Iran’s major trading partners. Bessent said countries and businesses would be given time to adjust their commercial relationships with Tehran before enforcement becomes more aggressive.
The US Treasury Department on Friday announced measures that could eventually result in Banque Misr, Egypt’s second-largest bank, losing access to the US financial system. Washington accused the institution of helping provide an economic lifeline to Iran’s leadership.
China, Iran’s largest trading partner and its main buyer of crude, has opposed what it considers unilateral US sanctions. Beijing has warned that it will take measures to protect its interests if Washington expands the campaign against countries and companies trading with Tehran.
Trump has also left open the possibility of further action against Chinese financial institutions, although he has not publicly detailed what measures may be under consideration.
The economic campaign is unfolding alongside continuing diplomatic efforts involving Qatar and Pakistan. Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani travelled to Tehran on Thursday as discussions continued over a proposal involving Iran and Oman to increase shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
The waterway remains a central point of tension in the conflict. Trump said Thursday that Hormuz was open and reported that 24 vessels had crossed the strait a day earlier. That figure, however, remains well below the roughly 130 vessels that passed through the strategic waterway each day before the war.
The reduction in traffic has significant implications for energy markets because approximately one-fifth of global oil supplies traditionally moves through Hormuz. The disruption has also affected liquefied natural gas shipments and increased concerns over the security of regional energy exports.
Iran has used the shipping disruption as a source of leverage while the United States maintains a naval blockade targeting Iranian oil flows. Trump said the blockade had prevented Iranian oil from reaching international markets.
“We have control and we have the blockade,” he said. “Iran is not getting anything. Nothing is going through.”
Despite the pressure, Tehran has continued to demonstrate its ability to operate under difficult economic conditions. Iran has spent decades dealing with international sanctions and has developed alternative trading, financial and shipping arrangements that have allowed it to maintain parts of its external commerce.
Aarathi Krishnan, a geopolitical risk analyst at RAKSHA Intelligence Future, said the Trump administration could be underestimating Iran’s ability to withstand additional economic pressure.
Iran was already experiencing significant economic difficulties before the war. Inflation was elevated, while World Bank data showed national income per person declining from approximately $8,000 in 2012 to about $5,000 in 2024.
The conflict has also imposed considerable costs on the United States. More than $37.5 billion has been spent on the war, while concerns have emerged about declining munitions inventories and the potential impact of prolonged fighting on US military preparedness in other regions.
Iranian officials have put their own economic losses from the conflict at about $270 billion in direct and indirect damage. US and Israeli military operations have also significantly affected Iran’s armed forces and leadership.
Israeli strikes during the opening phase of the war killed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and damaged much of Iran’s senior leadership structure, while Trump has repeatedly pointed to the damage inflicted on Iran’s naval and air capabilities.
Yet the continued fighting suggests that military and economic pressure has not produced an immediate settlement.
Trump has sought to portray the campaign as a success, including sharing a social media post this week declaring “MISSION ACCOMPLISHED 2026.” The declaration has drawn comparisons with former President George W. Bush’s 2003 “Mission Accomplished” announcement during the Iraq War, which later became associated with a premature declaration of victory as the conflict continued for years.
Trump has rejected comparisons with Iraq and Afghanistan, pointing to the absence of US ground troops deployed inside Iran.
The political consequences of the prolonged conflict nevertheless remain significant. The war has continued into a period of heightened domestic political pressure ahead of November’s elections, while Trump faces questions over the gap between his earlier expectations of a short operation and the conflict’s current duration.
Richard Goldberg, a former senior adviser on Iran at the US National Security Council during Trump’s first administration, has advocated a tougher campaign aimed at closing Iran’s remaining access to international trade and foreign currency.
It remains uncertain whether the administration will adopt measures on that scale, particularly given the potential economic consequences of targeting major countries and financial institutions that maintain commercial ties with Tehran.
Meanwhile, diplomatic channels remain active despite Trump’s reluctance to return immediately to negotiations. Qatar and Pakistan are continuing efforts to establish a possible exit from the conflict, while Iran and Oman are examining arrangements intended to facilitate maritime traffic through Hormuz.
The outcome of those efforts could determine whether the region moves towards a negotiated reduction in tensions or another phase of economic and military confrontation.
For now, Trump’s position is that Washington can afford to wait, while the administration continues tightening economic pressure on Tehran and regional mediators work to create conditions for renewed diplomacy.