President Trump Favors Deal with Iran, But Does Not Rule Out Military Action

US President Donald Trump. (Twitter/@ZelenskyyUa)

JAKARTA - US President Donald Trump on Wednesday said he preferred reaching an agreement with Iran rather than taking military action, while warning that the use of force remained an option if diplomacy failed.

"I prefer to make a deal because I don't want to kill people," President Trump said at an event in Las Vegas, launching Anadolu (6/8).

President Trump said his administration had been preparing to launch "the biggest attack since World War II," but delayed the plan after Iranian officials asked for talks.

"They called me and said, 'Please don't do that. Let's talk,'" he said.

"They said, 'We never said that.' You know? The 'fake news' media knows that they did say it, but we're having a dialogue. We'll see what happens, but they respect us," Trump said.

Furthermore, President Trump reiterated his stance that Iran must not have nuclear weapons.

Turning to the issue of oil and gasoline prices, President Trump said that prices would drop drastically once the current impasse with Iran was resolved.

"We have tried to lower the price, and once this situation with Iran is over, the price of oil will plummet and the price of gasoline will also go down," he explained.

The Middle East region escalated following the US-Israeli attack on Iranian territory on February 28, 2026, which was responded to with attacks on Israeli territory and US-related targets in regional countries.

On June 18, Washington and Tehran signed a framework agreement and began negotiations towards a final deal. However, the talks then stalled due to differences over security guarantees and freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.

Last month, tensions escalated again when the US launched an attack in Iranian territory, while Tehran responded by targeting what they called US military facilities and equipment in several Arab countries, especially Jordan, Bahrain, and Kuwait.