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Since before his first term, US President Donald Trump has paired threats against Washington’s long-time rival Iran with calls for negotiations under what he calls a “maximum pressure” policy.
Here’s a look at some of his key statements over the years:
2015: “Nuclear holocaust”
During the August 2015 Republican primaries, Trump criticised the nuclear deal Iran had reached with world powers the previous month. He argued the agreement would not stop Tehran from obtaining a bomb.
“I think it’s going to lead to nuclear holocaust,” Trump says.
2017: “Playing with fire”
In early February 2017, just after taking office, Trump tweeted, “Iran is playing with fire — they don’t appreciate how ‘kind’ President Obama was to them. Not me!” before announcing targeted sanctions.
Asked about possible military action, he responded, “Nothing is off the table”.
2018: “NEVER EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES”
On May 8, 2018, Trump withdrew the United States from the nuclear deal, calling it “defective.”
After Iranian President Hassan Rouhani warned that any conflict would be the “mother of all wars,” Trump fired back on July 22 with an all-caps tweet:
“NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE”.
On August 6, while confirming the return of sanctions, he said he was open to a new agreement:
“I remain open to reaching a more comprehensive deal that addresses the full range of the regime’s malign activities, including its ballistic missile program and its support for terrorism,” Trump says.
2019: Threat of “obliteration”
In May 2019, Trump said, “We are not looking for regime change,” while insisting, “They can’t have a nuclear weapon.”
After Iran accused Washington of dishonesty in negotiations, Trump toughened his tone on June 25:
“Any attack by Iran on anything American will be met with great and overwhelming force. In some areas, overwhelming will mean obliteration,” he tweets.
In September 2020, two months before losing his re-election bid, he warned that any Iranian attack would trigger a response “1,000 times greater.”
2025: Deal, or bombs
At the start of his second term in January 2025, Trump increased sanctions.
“If they don’t make a deal, there will be bombing,” NBC News says the president told one of its correspondents in March.
In June, as Oman-mediated talks stalled over uranium enrichment, he accused Iran of “slow-walking” negotiations.
2025: “At the last second”
After Israel launched a war against Iran on June 13, Trump left open the question of US military action.
“I like to make the final decision one second before it’s due, because things change. Especially with war,” he says, three days before American strikes on June 21 targeting three Iranian nuclear sites.
Though the full scale of the damage remains unclear, Trump repeatedly said he had “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear facilities and that the country had stopped being the “bully of the Middle East.”
2026: “Hour of freedom”
As Iran cracked down on mass protests that erupted in late December, Trump renewed his warnings.
“If they start killing people like they have in the past, we will get involved,” Trump says.
“It means hitting them very, very hard where it hurts.”
In late January 2026, he cautioned that “time is running out,” urging Tehran to “Make a deal.”
After indirect talks resumed, he warned on February 12 of “very traumatic” consequences if Iran failed to reach an agreement, giving it “10, 15 days, pretty much maximum.”
“The hour of your freedom is at hand,” Trump tells Iranians on February 28, as he announces “major combat” in Iran.
