U.S. President Donald Trump stated he “will never allow” Iran to have nuclear weapons. File
| Photo Credit: Reuters
The U.S. has mounted its largest military build-up in West Asia for the reason that 2003 Iraq invasion. It has deployed two plane service strike teams, dozens of fighter jets and warships, refuelling plane and superior missile defence methods. President Donald Trump has stated he would use drive if Iran fails to achieve a deal. Yet he has additionally despatched blended alerts in regards to the function of the deployment and what precisely Washington desires from Tehran.
Does the U.S. search regime change in Iran, because it as soon as did in Iraq and Afghanistan? Is the present escalation pushed by Iran’s crackdown on home protests, its nuclear programme or its missile improvement? Mr. Trump has but to articulate a coherent narrative explaining the goals of his Iran coverage.
Protests in Iran
On January 2, 2026, instantly after assembly Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Florida, Mr. Trump stated the U.S. was “locked and loaded” to reply if Iran killed protesters. On January 13, after Iran cracked down on protests, Mr. Trump requested Iranians to “take over institutions” and stated that “help is on the way”. But Mr. Trump didn’t order a strike on Iran. He later claimed that Iran had paused deliberate executions of protesters. He then despatched extra offensive and defensive weapons to the area.
On January 29, Mr. Trump shifted focus away from protests and urged Tehran to come back and negotiate a deal on its nuclear programme. This marked a notable flip. In early January, whereas threatening army motion towards Iran, he had made no reference to the nuclear challenge. In June 2025, after attacking Iran’s nuclear amenities throughout the 12-day struggle between Iran and Israel, Mr. Trump had claimed that he had “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear programme.
Nuclear diplomacy
Amid tensions and threats, the U.S. and Iran resumed nuclear diplomacy on February 6 in Muscat, Oman. Steve Witkoff, Mr. Trump’s particular envoy for West Asia, met Abbas Araghchi, the Iranian Foreign Minister. There have been obvious disputes in regards to the framework of the talks. Iran stated it was prepared to debate the nuclear programme and open to a “fair and equitable deal”. But Marco Rubio, the U.S. Secretary of State, stated on February 4, earlier than the primary spherical of talks, that discussions ought to cowl Iran’s missile and nuclear programmes, its assist for militia teams within the area and its remedy of its inhabitants. Despite the disagreements, talks went forward.
On February 22, after two rounds of talks, Mr. Witkoff stated in an interview that Mr. Trump had given him and Jared Kushner, the President’s son-in-law who can also be a part of the negotiating workforce, a transparent route on what they wished to realize. “Zero zero enrichment, we have to get the material back.” He was referring to Iran’s uranium enrichment capabilities and the stockpile of extremely enriched uranium. Mr. Witkoff didn’t say something about Iran’s missile programme or its assist for militias when he talked about Mr. Trump’s pink traces. He additionally stated that the President was curious to know why Iran “has not capitulated” regardless of America’s troop build-up close to its shores.
Iranian officers have repeatedly stated that they weren’t planning to make a nuclear bomb, however refused to surrender their enrichment capabilities or enriched uranium. Iran’s missile programme and its assist for militias, they are saying, are non-negotiable.
Deal or struggle?
On February 24, on the eve of Mr. Trump’s State of the Union Address, Mr. Araghchi confirmed a 3rd spherical of talks with the U.S. on February 26. “Our fundamental convictions are crystal clear: Iran will under no circumstances ever develop a nuclear weapon,” he wrote in a social media submit. “Neither will Iranians forgo our right to harness the dividends of peaceful nuclear technology for our people,” he stated.
In his State of the Union Address, Mr. Trump didn’t converse a lot on Iran.
He repeated his declare that the U.S. assault had “obliterated Iran’s nuclear programme”. The Iranians are beginning their nuclear programme “all over”, he added. “They want to make a deal but we haven’t heard those secret words: ‘We will never have a nuclear weapon’.” He slammed Iran’s missile programme, its assist for militias and its crackdown on protesters, however he didn’t demand any concession about these points as a part of a deal. He didn’t even point out Iran’s enrichment capabilities.
Mr. Trump talked solely a few nuclear weapon. He stated he “will never allow” Iran to have nuclear weapons. And the Iranians have repeatedly stated that they weren’t planning to have a nuclear bomb. “If the main issue in the negotiations is Iran not developing nuclear weapons, this aligns with #Leader_Fatwa and #Iran_Defensive_Doctrine, and an immediate agreement is within reach,” Ali Shamkhani, chief of Iran’s newly created Defence Council and a heavyweight within the system, wrote in a social media submit on Thursday, referring to Supreme Leader Khamenei’s fatwa towards nuclear weapons. “Araghchi has sufficient support and authority for this deal,” he added.
Published – February 26, 2026 07:48 pm IST
