President Donald Trump says he expects negotiations with Iran to resume this week. His comments came one day after he rejected an Iranian proposal linked to reopening the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump also said he has not ruled out further U.S. military action before the November midterm elections. At the same time, he said he expects the conflict to end soon.
Quick Fact
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| What happened? | Trump rejected an Iranian proposal linked to reopening the Strait of Hormuz. |
| Latest development | Trump said talks with Iran could resume this week. |
| Date | September 27, 2026 |
| Key people | Donald Trump and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi |
| Military action | Trump has not ruled out further strikes on Iran before the November midterm elections. |
| Key issue | The Strait of Hormuz and the conditions for restarting diplomacy remain central to the dispute. |
| Current status | Iran says it remains open to diplomacy while preparing for a possible continuation of the conflict. |
Before the November midterm elections, President Trump stated on Sunday that he has not ruled out carrying out additional military strikes on Iran.
When Aishah Hasnie of News asked if strikes in the upcoming weeks were still possible, Mr. Trump said, “I don’t want to say that.” That’s not what I want to express. I really don’t want to admit that, even though it’s conceivable.”
Mr. Trump projected that the war would finish soon and that “the oil will go down way down to what it was before the war,” as he has done multiple times in recent months.
Trump expects talks with Iran to resume this week
The following week, one day after he turned down Tehran’s offer of a truce. In a phone conversation with Axios on Sunday, Mr. Trump stated, “They want to make a deal, but it is not the deal that I want to make.” “It is what we would have maybe agreed to a year ago.”
Iran announced on Friday that it had sent the United States a plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, but Mr. Trump rejected it, claiming that Iranian leaders wanted the agreement because “they are losing so badly.”Mr. Trump told Axios, “They overplayed their hand.”
Rep. Jim Himes says Trump's "threat to annihilate Iran is nonsensical"
President Trump’s “threat to annihilate Iran is nonsensical,” according to Democratic Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut, the ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, who also cautioned about the influence Iran might have over the midterm elections.
Himes stated on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” “He’s been trying that for six months now, and he’s not wrong—we sank their navy, we destroyed a lot of their planes—but, you know, the Iranians have, for six months, sustained the very worst that we and the Israelis can throw at them.”
Himes Warns Iran Could Influence Elections
Himes argued that, “The Iranians now, in some sense, control what happens on election day.”
“If the Iranian regime wants to make sure that Mike Lawler loses in New York-17, or that Ashley Hinson is not a senator in the Midwest, they will call their friends the Houthis and say, ‘Fire five missiles at five ships,’ or they’ll fire a couple of missiles or drones at ships in the Strait of Hormuz,” he said.
Himes continued, “Oil goes up to $120 a barrel, diesel, already at record highs, goes to $8 a gallon, and guess what? Mike Lawler and Ashley Hinson lose their elections, right?”
Kennedy Rejects Iran's Proposal
Iran’s proposal, according to Senator Kennedy, was “not a serious offer”
Iran’s proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and resume negotiations, according to Republican Senator John Kennedy of Louisiana, is “not a serious offer.
“Bambi’s baby brother is not the president. Kennedy stated on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” on Sunday that he declined. “We need to continue doing what we’re doing — the sanctions, the blockade.”
Kennedy stated, “We’ve got to either figure out a way to settle this thing, to get the strait open, or to escalate,” but he made it clear that he would not be in favor of sending soldiers.
