The war is pending? The report says that Trump was briefed on the options for all-out war on Iran, but chose talks

US President Donald Trump has considered resuming large-scale military strikes against Iran in recent days, but has for now decided to continue diplomatic negotiations, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal, citing US officials familiar with the discussions.According to the report, Trump held multiple conversations with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Kaine about whether the United States should abandon nuclear talks with Tehran and return to large-scale military action.Discussions reportedly focused on whether Washington should “finish the job” by launching another round of attacks on Iran. However, officials said Trump believes renewed military operations at this stage could derail ongoing negotiations and reduce the chances of reaching an agreement to dismantle Iran’s nuclear program.The report also said that Trump told aides that he was willing to allow negotiations to continue beyond the current August 18 deadline for a nuclear deal, giving diplomacy more time despite the slow pace of talks.While a broader military campaign is ruled out for the time being, Trump is said to support limited retaliatory strikes if Iran violates the existing understanding between the two sides. This stance comes in the wake of a recent exchange of attacks that briefly threatened the fragile ceasefire reached earlier this month.

“They agree to everything I want, and they should do it,” Trump told reporters last week. “Otherwise we’ll go back and do what we have to do.”US Vice President J.D. Vance echoed that position in an interview with Fox News on Tuesday, saying the administration would continue negotiations but reserved “a lot of options” if diplomacy failed.Meanwhile, Trump’s Middle East envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner arrived in Doha to conduct another round of indirect negotiations with Iranian representatives through Qatari mediators, according to the report.Negotiations remain stalled over several issues, including Iran’s demand to impose service fees on ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz and disagreements over restrictions on Tehran’s nuclear programme.The report said that senior Pentagon officials continued to offer Trump military options in the event of a breakdown in diplomacy. However, the president has repeatedly refrained from authorizing another large-scale attack since agreeing to a ceasefire earlier this year, despite previously warning of dire military consequences if Iran targets US forces.However, Iran said on Tuesday that it would not meet with senior US envoys who traveled to the region after the recent outbreak of hostilities, raising new doubts about the prospects for a lasting peace between the two countries, Reuters news agency reported.Iranian officials also said the two sides must first resolve the terms of a ceasefire signed two weeks ago before tackling more contentious issues, including potential restrictions on Tehran’s nuclear programme.