Trump Weighs Iran Strategy Options

PHOTO CAPTION: President Donald Trump waves from Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, May 12, 2026. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Alex Broome.

Aug. 11 — President Donald Trump accused Iran of being “devious negotiators” and said the United States could continue applying economic pressure or strike Tehran “really, really hard,” describing some of the options he is considering in the war.

“I’m sort of negotiating,” Trump told Real America’s Voice in a phone interview released late Monday. “They’re very devious negotiators.”

Since the conflict began in late February, Trump has repeatedly shifted between threats of escalation and statements that a peace agreement is near. Pakistan said Tuesday that the United States and Iran were close to “some sort” of deal, while Qatar said talks over management of the Strait of Hormuz had reached an advanced stage despite reports of new attacks on shipping in regional waters.

Trump described one possible approach as continuing his current strategy and allowing economic pressure on Iran to build.

“Do what I’m doing now: just bop along and look how bad they’re doing,” Trump said. “Economically, they are a mess. They can’t borrow money.”

“We control their money, what they had, which is a lot. They had a lot, and we have total control of it. I’m their banker,” Trump added, referring to frozen Iranian assets.

Another option, Trump said, would be to “hit them really, really hard.”

Trump also dismissed concerns about U.S. munitions levels, saying the country was “building them like crazy” and blaming former President Joe Biden for any reduction in inventories.

Reuters reported last week that the U.S. Army had used much of its stockpile of highly accurate long-range missiles during the Iran war, raising concerns about military readiness for potential future conflicts.

“We’re fine with munitions,” Trump said. “But the reason it would be lower, and we’re building them like crazy, but the reason it’s low is because he (Biden) gave $300 billion worth to Ukraine.”

(Source: Reuters)