Trump says Hormuz will open under Iran deal, rules out sanctions relief

US War Secretary Pete Hegseth said Washington is prepared to return to military action if negotiations fail to ensure the Islamic Republic never obtains a nuclear weapon.

Speaking at a White House Cabinet meeting, Hegseth said President Donald Trump had created the conditions to protect Americans and the wider world from what he called a generational threat from Iran.

“There’s only one man over the course of both presidencies who has stood up and said they will never get a nuclear weapon,” Hegseth said, referring to Trump.

He cited Trump’s killing of Qasem Soleimani, withdrawal from the Obama-era nuclear deal, the 12-day war and subsequent US military operations against Iran as part of a broader pressure campaign aimed at stopping Tehran from acquiring a nuclear weapon.

Hegseth said the United States had avoided what he described as the old approach of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

“Instead, you said, we’re going to do this smart. We’re going to do it overwhelming. We’re going to use maximum lethality. And we’re going to bring them to their knees,” Hegseth said.

He said Iran’s navy was “at the bottom of the Persian Gulf” and that its air force, air defenses and defense industrial base had been heavily damaged.

“They may have missiles, but they can’t build more right now. And they can’t build more drones right now. And they can’t build more ships,” he said.

Hegseth said those losses helped bring Tehran to talks with US envoys, including Steve Witkoff, Jared Kushner and Vice President JD Vance.

He also said the United States had imposed a “world-class blockade” on Iranian ports, preventing goods from entering or leaving and badly hurting Iran’s economy.

“We know from the intel that their economy is hurting big time because that is their lifeblood,” he said.

Hegseth added that Washington had expanded pressure on Iran’s shadow tanker fleet.

“No Iranian tanker around the globe is safe,” he said, pointing to seizures he said had further choked off Tehran’s economic lifeline.

He said the goal remained to ensure Iran never obtains a nuclear weapon, either through negotiations or, if necessary, by returning to military action.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said President Donald Trump prefers a negotiated diplomatic path with Iran and that talks have made some progress, but warned Washington has other options if diplomacy fails.

“The bottom line is Iran is never going to have a nuclear weapon,” Rubio said at a White House Cabinet meeting, adding that recent events had reinforced Washington’s view that Tehran should never be allowed to obtain one.

Rubio said Trump had repeatedly made clear that negotiations were his preferred route.

“Diplomacy is always the first option,” he said, adding that US envoys, including Steve Witkoff, Jared Kushner and Vice President JD Vance, had been involved in the effort.

“If there’s an agreement to be made, we want that to be made,” Rubio said.

He said there had been “some progress and some interest” in the talks, adding that Washington would see “over the next few hours and days” whether further progress could be made.

Rubio said the United States would give diplomacy “every chance to succeed,” but added that Trump had other options available if negotiations failed.

His comments came as the White House rejected an Iranian state TV report on a draft deal as a “complete fabrication,” while also saying Trump’s red line remained ensuring Iran does not obtain a nuclear weapon.

President Donald Trump said Iran was very eager to reach an agreement with the United States but said talks had not produced a result so far.

Speaking at a Cabinet meeting at the White House, Trump also said Washington was not satisfied with the current state of negotiations with Tehran.

"Iran is very much intent, they want very much to make a deal. So far they haven't gotten there ... we're not satisfied with it, but we will be. We will be either that or we'll have to just finish the job," Trump added.

In a separate interview with PBS News, Trump said Tehran would receive no concessions or sanctions relief in exchange for handing over its highly enriched uranium.

He said any such arrangement would not include the lifting of sanctions.

IRGC-affiliated Fars News Agency reported, citing informed sources, that President Donald Trump may unilaterally announce in the coming hours that an agreement between the United States and the Islamic Republic has been finalized.

Fars described such a possible move as an attempt to apply pressure and shape public perception before remaining disputes are fully resolved.

A member of Iran’s negotiating team told Fars that some issues remain unresolved and that there would be “no agreement” until all matters raised by the Islamic Republic are settled.

The source said Tehran would formally announce the result if those issues are fully resolved.

The White House’s Rapid Response 47 account rejected an Iranian state TV report about a claimed draft memorandum of understanding with the United States, calling it “not true” and “a complete fabrication.”

The post linked to a Fox News report saying Iranian state TV had published what it described as a new draft proposal for peace with the United States.

Fox said the claimed proposal still clashed with several major American red lines and reportedly included demands tied to Iran’s nuclear program and future enforcement measures, as well as the release of $20 billion in frozen funds.

“This report from Iranian controlled media is not true and the MOU they ‘released’ is a complete fabrication,” Rapid Response 47 wrote on X. “Nobody should believe what Iranian state media is putting out.”

Fox also reported that Vice President JD Vance said he remained hopeful an agreement could still be reached, but warned that the administration was focused on securing a deal that Iran would not violate in the future.