Exclusive: Trump floats "off ramps" after attacking Iran
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President Trump told Axios on Saturday that he has several "off ramps" from Operation Epic Fury, the extraordinary U.S. military campaign against Iran that he launched early Saturday morning.
What they're saying: "I can go long and take over the whole thing, or end it in two or three days and tell the Iranians: 'See you again in a few years if you start rebuilding [your nuclear and missile programs]," Trump said in a five-minute phone interview from Mar-a-Lago.
- "In any case, it will take them several years to recover from this attack," he predicted.
Why it matters: The comments offer the first real window into Trump's thinking about how this ends — and suggest he's still open to a diplomatic solution, even after U.S.-Iran nuclear talks collapsed in Geneva.
- A short operation followed by new ultimatums would be a dramatically different outcome than the regime change that some U.S. and Israeli officials have described as the goal.
- Trump is facing domestic pressure, including from his MAGA base, to avoid a prolonged Middle East intervention.
Driving the news: Trump cited two main reasons for launching the strikes — the first being the failure of negotiations this week led by his envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.
- "The Iranians got close and then pulled back — close and then pulled back. I understood from that that they don't really want a deal," he said.
The second reason was Iran's conduct over the last several decades.
- Trump said that while writing his speech Friday announcing the attack, he asked his team to compile every Iranian-linked attack around the world over the past 25 years.
- "I saw that every month they did something bad, blew something up or killed someone," he told Axios.
Between the lines: Trump also claimed that Iran had begun rebuilding some of the nuclear facilities that the U.S. and Israel struck during last June's 12-Day War. Independent analysts pointed to building activity taking place in some of the nuclear sites, but didn't conclude that Iran has resumed nuclear activity.
- Trump reiterated several times that his decision to launch "Operation Midnight Hammer" — which destroyed or significantly damaged three of Iran's nuclear facilities — allowed the current operation to take place.
- He argued that if he hadn't struck the nuclear facilities in June, Iran might have already developed a nuclear weapon by now, which would have made it impossible to attack.
The big picture: The U.S. and Israel have launched the most ambitious military operation in the Middle East in a generation — one explicitly designed not just to degrade Iran's military capabilities, but to create the conditions that could bring down the regime.
- The U.S.-Israeli operational plan envisions the massive bombing campaign lasting at least five days, according to a senior U.S. official.
- But, as Trump told Axios, that timeline could change based on developments on the ground — including the fate of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, whom Israel targeted for assassination along with other senior officials.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in an address on Saturday afternoon that "signs are growing" that Khamenei has been killed following an Israeli strike on his compound.
- Trump said he spoke with Netanyahu on Saturday after the two countries launched their joint operation. "I had a great conversation with Bibi — we're on the same wavelength," he said.
- Trump also spoke with the leaders of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and the NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said.
This story is breaking news. Please check back for updates.
