Trump ‘no longer wants a deal’ with Iran, as U.S. military is reportedly preparing for possible strikes before the midterm elections

U.S. President Donald Trump said he ‘no longer wants a deal’ with Iran, while NBC reported that the US military is bracing for a possible attack against the country. Trump and his national security team have discussed resuming large-scale strikes in Iran before the November midterm elections, with such action possibly taking place in the coming weeks. The report said the talks are ongoing, citing a U.S. official and another person familiar with the discussions.

At a campaign rally in San Antonio, Trump said, “I think the deal isn’t really something that I want to do, but they’re willing to offer us anything to stop.” He also said that U.S. special envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff, who has been involved in efforts to negotiate an agreement, had been “doing very well.”

Trump previously claimed the difficulty in negotiations was unclear because it was unclear who was calling the shots for Iran. Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei rejected the accusation, saying that US officials are well aware of who their Iranian counterparts are and how Iran’s decision-making system works. “The problem is actually the opposite. It lies in the contradictory positions and mixed messaging from US officials,” Baghaei said.

The armed conflict will not end anytime soon

Axios reported separately that a possible resumption of combat operations could involve massive bombing of Iranian energy facilities, infrastructure and nuclear sites. It also reported that, in turn, a military escalation could affect the US midterm elections.

Crude oil prices have remained high even as Middle East exports have been recovering to near prewar levels, according to Kpler. Combined crude shipments exiting the Gulf, excluding Iran, plus volumes from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, were around pre-conflict levels of 18.5 million barrels per day.

Matt Wright, lead freight analyst at Kpler, said the crude oil market was unlikely to return to normal immediately. “Normalization no longer needs to wait for a deal,” he said, predicting a “slower, uneven normalization” as shipping activity adjusts to the ongoing conflict rather than waiting for a diplomatic agreement.

The war, which is costing about $3 billion a month, has hurt the Republican Party’s campaign ahead of the midterms. Higher energy prices have put Trump and Republicans under huge pressure as they fight for control of Congress.