Trump Threatens Iran Strike "Tomorrow" as Tehran Says It Will Reopen Hormuz

President Donald Trump said on October 24 that the United States could strike Iran as soon as the next day, raising the threat of renewed war while leaving room for a deal. ^[1]

Iran, meanwhile, has offered through Pakistan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz if Washington lifts its naval blockade of Iranian ports, according to Iran's ambassador to Pakistan, Reza Amiri Moghadam. He said Tehran remained open to negotiations under an interim agreement brokered in June. ^[3]

The two governments are confronting choices left unresolved by that agreement: how to restore shipping, end the blockade and negotiate over Iran's nuclear program. The US-Israeli war on Iran began in February and remained unresolved despite a ceasefire and an agreement to finalize a peace deal, according to Anadolu. ^[1][3]

"Do you really think I'm going to tell you if I'm going to do it?" Trump said, according to Anadolu's account of his remarks. He also said Iran could avoid further military action by reaching a deal. ^[1]

Trump has not announced a decision or an order to attack. No US acceptance of Iran's proposal has been announced, and Washington's formal response, the offer's full conditions and any agreed next diplomatic step are not established. Moghadam said Trump had rejected the proposal by insisting that the blockade would continue, an Iranian account of the US position rather than an independently confirmed American response. ^[1][3]

The Daily Inference reported on October 22 that preparations for possible renewed strikes included stepped-up exercises and potential attacks on energy, nuclear and military sites, but that Trump had not approved an operation. His latest remarks give the threat a more immediate horizon.

An offer through Pakistan

Moghadam, speaking at a seminar in Islamabad, told the Associated Press that Tehran had conveyed its willingness to reopen the strait through Pakistan. His public account puts an Iranian official's name behind a proposal that had first emerged through unnamed sources. ^[3]

TASS had reported the offer, citing sources who spoke to Al Arabiya. According to that account, Iran proposed reopening shipping through Hormuz in exchange for the United States lifting its blockade, and also told Pakistan it was ready to resume negotiations with Washington. Iran had not commented at the time of that report. ^[2]

The exchange would address two immediate sources of pressure. Ships would regain passage through the strait, while Iranian ports would gain relief from the US naval blockade. Each government would have to give up a means of applying pressure to the other.

Those elements already formed part of the June interim agreement. Brokered through Pakistan, it sought to restore shipping through Hormuz, lift the American blockade and begin negotiations toward a broader settlement addressing Iran's nuclear program.

Moghadam said Iran remained willing to talk within that framework. Reopening the waterway and lifting the blockade would leave the nuclear negotiations ahead. ^[3]

Trump said his aim was to prevent Iran from eventually developing a nuclear weapon. He argued that an earlier US operation involving B-2 bombers would not secure a lasting outcome, questioned whether Tehran would keep an agreement and said he was unsure what would happen next. ^[1]

The gap is therefore wider than the immediate shipping bargain. Tehran's offer addresses passage and ports. Trump's stated objective requires an outcome he believes will last on the nuclear issue. A maritime exchange could open that negotiation, but it would not itself settle it.

Military warnings on the water

Iran's armed forces chief, Ali Abdollahi, said Iran was prepared to fire on US warships and would not allow the US Navy to re-enter Iranian territorial waters or their periphery. Al Jazeera reported his remarks from a statement carried by Iranian state media. ^[4]

His warning places the naval confrontation alongside the diplomatic exchange. The blockade is both the pressure Washington is applying and the measure Tehran wants removed before reopening the strait, according to Moghadam's account. ^[3][4]

The economic pressure is already visible. Al Jazeera reported continuing attacks on vessels in and around Hormuz and said Brent crude had reached about $117 a barrel, its highest price since April. Responsibility for each reported vessel attack has not been independently established. ^[4]

For countries outside the confrontation, that means the costs reach beyond the question of whether Trump orders another strike. Disrupted shipping and more expensive oil give governments far from the strait a direct stake in getting an agreement to work.

Regional pressure against another attack

At a meeting in Istanbul, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said another attack on Iran would widen the war and spread the conflict. He said military intervention was not a solution. The gathering included regional and European countries, but neither the United States nor Iran took part. ^[4]

The next diplomatic move turns on whether Washington and Tehran are willing to act on the proposal.