President Donald Trump convened a high-level national security meeting in the White House Situation Room on Monday afternoon to discuss the administration’s next moves on Iran, according to a US official who spoke with The Times of Israel. The meeting follows the collapse of negotiations with Tehran over the weekend, with Iran refusing to make substantial concessions on its nuclear program.
Attendees at the meeting include Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Joint Chiefs Chairman General Dan Caine, and special envoy Steve Witkoff. Two senior US officials told Channel 12 that renewed military action is on the table to ratchet up pressure on Iran, with one quoted as saying, “Trump is going to hit them a bit.”
The developments come on the heels of Trump’s remarks to reporters in the Oval Office earlier Monday, where he lambasted the current ceasefire as “unbelievably weak” and “on life support” after reading Iran’s response, which he dismissed as a “piece of garbage.” While Trump initially confirmed reports that Iran had agreed to remove all enriched uranium from the country, he quickly reversed course, claiming they “didn’t put it in the paper.” Iranian sources have disputed Western media accounts, denying any such agreement was ever made.
The president’s skepticism about the ceasefire and frustration with the diplomatic impasse have fueled speculation that the White House is preparing for a return to hostilities. When pressed on Monday about his plans should the ceasefire fully unravel, Trump asserted that he has “the best plan ever,” claiming that Iran has already been “defeated militarily totally” with only “a little left.”
(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
