Trump says Iran will pay — what it takes to end the war remains unclear

Nearly 5 months aft launching a sweeping run against Iran’s nuclear, missile, naval and proxy capabilities, nan Trump management is now fighting to reopen nan Strait of Hormuz while negotiations person yet to nutrient a imperishable settlement.

The management says its renewed strikes person a clear contiguous objective: "making Iran pay." Less clear is what Iran must do to extremity nan strikes — aliases what conditions would let nan U.S. to measurement backmost from a increasing subject committedness successful nan region.

President Donald Trump has threatened to grow nan run to Iran’s atomic sites, bridges, powerfulness plants and different infrastructure.

ARMY IDS 2 VICTIMS KILLED IN JORDAN AIR BASE ATTACK; TRUMP: IRAN WILL PAY 'MANY TIMES OVER'

In consequence to questioning connected nan extremity goals successful Iran, a U.S. charismatic said: "Right now, nan President is focused connected making Iran salary for their violations of nan MOU and their continued acts of terrorism successful nan Strait of Hormuz," referring to nan memorandum of knowing betwixt Iran and nan United States.

"In addition, nan President will make Iran salary for nan caller deaths of U.S. soldiers," nan charismatic said.

The Trump management says its renewed strikes person a clear contiguous objective: "making Iran pay." (Morteza Akhoundi via Getty Image)

"These devastating blows will proceed until nan President deems otherwise, but talks betwixt our countries are continuing," nan charismatic said. "President Trump has each of nan cards and each options astatine his disposal, and Iran tin ne'er person a nuclear weapon."

The consequence defined nan contiguous run arsenic reward for Iran’s actions but did not place immoderate information Tehran could meet to halt nan strikes beyond Trump deciding that nan reward had been sufficient. Follow-up questioning by Fox News Digital went unanswered.

STEVE FORBES URGES TRUMP TO KEEP THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ OPEN AT ALL COSTS

When Trump launched its subject Operation Epic Fury mission Feb. 28, nan White House laid retired 4 sweeping objectives: preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, destroying its ballistic missiles and accumulation capacity, annihilating its navy and severing its support for violent proxies.

The management declared those subject objectives achieved successful April. But Iran retained capable capacity to adjacent nan Strait of Hormuz, onslaught commercialized shipping and target U.S. forces and friends crossed nan region.

The administration’s contiguous attraction is now nan strait. U.S. Central Command said Thursday that its latest strikes targeted Iranian maritime capabilities, coastal surveillance sites, aerial defenses and rocket and drone accommodation to degrade Tehran’s expertise to onslaught commercialized vessels.

TRUMP SEEKS $672M TO STOP IRANIAN NUKES AS NEGOTIATORS WEIGH FATE OF URANIUM STOCKPILE

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has framed nan existent run arsenic an effort to forestall Iran from establishing a "dangerous precedent" by controlling an world waterway, while maintaining that Washington remains unfastened to diplomacy. He said Iran must extremity attacking commercialized ships and reopen nan strait earlier nan United States changes its behavior.

Mourners stitchery astir a conveyance transporting nan coffin of Iran's precocious Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed connected February 28 successful Israeli and U.S. airstrikes, and coffins of his family members, connected nan time of his burial, successful a culmination of a wide funeral, successful Mashhad, Iran, July 9, 2026. (Majid Asgaripour/West Asia News Agency, via REUTERS)

"Their behaviour has to alteration successful bid for ours to change," Rubio said Sunday.

Yet caller strikes person expanded beyond Iran's maritime capabilities to see bridges and different infrastructure arsenic Trump continues threatening atomic facilities, raising caller questions astir really nan widening target group fits into nan administration's broader strategy.

Meanwhile, nan final atomic agreement envisioned nether nan June memorandum of knowing has not materialized, moreover arsenic nan White House says talks betwixt Washington and Iran are continuing. The memorandum had envisioned an statement wrong 60 days, but renewed fighting has near its timing and prospects uncertain.

Trump has continued threatening Iran’s atomic infrastructure, including nan profoundly buried Pickaxe Mountain facility. But he has besides appeared to soften 1 of nan administration’s original demands, saying successful June that Iran could clasp immoderate ballistic missiles successful proportionality to neighboring countries.

The management has not clarified whether nan original rocket nonsubjective was achieved, relaxed arsenic portion of negotiations aliases remains portion of a early settlement, nor whether ending Iran’s support for proxies remains a information for victory.

Publicly, nan renewed run has a clear contiguous subject task — protecting shipping and preventing Iran from asserting power complete Hormuz — but nan relationship betwixt that mission, nan stalled atomic process and Trump’s threats to widen nan warfare remains unexplained.

Eighteen U.S. work members person been killed since nan warfare began, while Secretary of War Pete Hegseth told lawmakers Tuesday that nan run has costs an estimated $37.5 billion.

Retired Air Force Brig. Gen. Robert Spalding, a elder chap astatine nan Hudson Institute, a blimpish deliberation tank, who served arsenic a elder strategy charismatic successful nan first Trump White House, based on that nan run tin still beryllium understood astir 1 overriding objective.

"I deliberation nan extremity end is to forestall them from having a atomic weapon," Spalding told Fox News Digital. "The extremity is very clear. It is: How do you want to spell astir getting to those goals, and past what are you consenting to salary to execute them? That’s nan determination that has to beryllium made."

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has framed nan existent run arsenic an effort to forestall Iran from establishing a "dangerous precedent" by controlling an world waterway, while maintaining that Washington remains unfastened to diplomacy. (Brendan SMIALOWSKI / POOL / AFP via Getty Images)

On Hormuz, Spalding predicted that protecting commercialized shipping could require prolonged U.S. presence, comparing it to Operations Northern and Southern Watch, nan yearslong U.S.-led enforcement of no-fly zones complete Iraq.

"I don’t deliberation that we’re leaving nan area anytime soon," Spalding said.

He described that imaginable ngo arsenic "almost an airborne and seaborne business of nan strait and nan Gulf" intended to sphere nan free travel of world shipping.

Such a ngo could springiness nan existent strikes a defined subject purpose, but it would not needfully resoluteness nan atomic negotiations, destruct Iran's remaining leverage aliases nutrient a governmental settlement. It could alternatively time off American forces enforcing entree to Hormuz for an extended play while nan broader conflict remains unresolved.

Ali Vaez, Iran task head astatine nan International Crisis Group, said nan administration’s changing nationalist accent reflects nan absence of a coherent strategy connecting its subject actions to an achievable extremity state.

"The management does not look to person a clear strategy," Vaez told Fox News Digital. "It’s been a moving goalpost."

Vaez besides based on that nan conflict has fixed Iran a potent caller shape of leverage: nan demonstrated expertise to choke shipping done Hormuz and enforce economical symptom connected nan United States. He described Iran’s power complete nan strait arsenic a "weapon of wide destruction."

"For much than 4 decades, nan United States has been capable to coerce nan Iranian authorities economically," Vaez said. "The Iranians ne'er had nan anticipation of retaliating successful kind, of putting unit connected nan pocketbook of each American citizen."

The U.S. is now trying to inflict capable symptom connected Iran that it abandons its insistence connected controlling nan strait, according to Vaez. But Iran views that power arsenic its astir valuable remaining root of leverage and 1 it cannot surrender without weakening its position successful immoderate early negotiations, he argued.

President Donald Trump confirmed nan U.S. launched strikes connected Iran connected Saturday, Feb. 28, 2026. (The White House via X Account/Anadolu via Getty Images/Contributor/Getty Images)

"We are successful a zero-sum situation," Vaez said. "The U.S. is trying to region a instrumentality of leverage from nan hands of nan Iranians that they judge is basal to their survival."

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

Although nan United States retains overwhelming subject superiority, Vaez based on that neither broadside has been capable to present a decisive blow. Washington tin proceed inflicting damage, he said, while Tehran has a greater willingness to sorb it because it views nan conflict arsenic a struggle for nan regime’s survival.

"There is nary subject solution to resolving nan problem successful nan strait," Vaez said. "After overmuch much decease and destruction, I deliberation some sides would return to nan aforesaid logic that led them to work together to nan MOU successful nan first place—which is that neither broadside is really capable to present a knockout rustle to nan other."