U.S. President Donald Trump said Friday that Iran wants an agreement to end the ongoing conflict but is “not ready to make the right deal,” as Washington prepares to unveil a fresh round of sanctions aimed at squeezing Tehran’s economy.
Speaking to reporters before departing for South Carolina, Trump said the United States now holds effective control over the Strait of Hormuz and surrounding areas. “They would love to make a deal, but they’re not ready to make the right deal, in my opinion,” he said, adding that Iran currently lacks functioning naval and air forces and is struggling to pay its soldiers.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the administration will announce new financial penalties targeting Iran on Monday, following Trump’s warning that any country offering Tehran an economic “lifeline” would face consequences. Vice President JD Vance said Thursday that economic pressure has become “the most effective tool” in the current phase of the conflict, acknowledging Iran would likely respond with counter-pressure of its own but arguing Tehran has felt the greater strain so far.
U.S. and allied strikes have significantly degraded Iran’s conventional military capabilities, though Tehran retains missile and drone capacity sufficient to threaten regional targets and disrupt shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. Trump has yet to secure some of his stated war aims, including the dismantling of Iran’s nuclear program.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi dismissed the new U.S. sanctions push as a repeat of past pressure campaigns that failed to force concessions from Tehran, while Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Iran remains open to ending the war but only through negotiations conducted from a position of strength.
The 60-day window that Trump had set for a comprehensive agreement expired earlier this week without a deal, and Trump has said he is in no hurry to reach one, citing an established back channel with officials from Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps. Oil prices rose Friday on the prospect of tighter supply following the sanctions threat, with China — which buys the majority of Iran’s seaborne oil exports — calling for a diplomatic resolution.
The prolonged conflict has pushed up gasoline prices in the U.S. and weighed on Trump’s approval ratings, which touched their lowest point of his current term in a recent Reuters/Ipsos poll.
