Hegseth says US 'more than capable' of resuming Iran strikes after Trump Situation Room meeting

President Donald Trump said Saturday that he is willing to take a slower approach to negotiations with Iran despite concerns about the economic impact of the conflict.

Speaking on "My View with Lara Trump," Trump said rushing negotiations could undermine the chances of securing a favorable agreement.

"I'm in no hurry," Trump said. "I'd like to say I'm in a hurry, because you know what, gasoline prices are going to come tumbling down, but if you're going to be in a hurry, you're not going to make a good deal."

Trump said the administration continues to make progress in negotiations and remains focused on ensuring Iran cannot obtain a nuclear weapon.

"Slowly but surely, we're getting, I think, what we want," Trump said.

His comments come as Trump's deliberations over the next phase of negotiations and potential military options have stretched into a second full day following Friday's Situation Room meeting on Iran.

Hoover Institution senior fellow Victor Davis Hanson argued Saturday that Iran's leadership views simply remaining in power as a form of victory, even after suffering significant military and economic losses during the conflict.

Speaking on "Life, Liberty & Levin," Hanson said Tehran may be attempting to prolong negotiations and regional instability in hopes of gaining leverage while avoiding a decisive defeat.

"They interpret survival with victory," Hanson said. "Every day that they're still there, they say, 'See, we took on the superpower of civilizational history, and we're still here.'"

Hanson also argued that Iranian leaders view U.S. restraint as weakness rather than goodwill and are seeking to exploit ongoing negotiations to buy time.

He suggested President Donald Trump should establish a deadline for talks and make clear that failure to reach an agreement would result in severe economic and military consequences for the regime.

His comments came as the Trump administration continues negotiations with Iran while weighing next steps if a diplomatic agreement cannot be reached.

Foundation for Defense of Democracies CEO Mark Dubowitz argued Saturday that the destruction of a significant portion of Iran's missile force and production infrastructure may prove to be the most important outcome of the war.

In a post on X, Dubowitz said Iran's missile and nuclear programs should be viewed together because each strengthened the other.

"What made Iran's strategy so dangerous wasn't just the potential for nuclear weapons, but the prospect of those weapons being protected by thousands of increasingly accurate ballistic missiles," Dubowitz wrote.

Dubowitz argued that Iran's growing missile arsenal was designed to deter military action against its nuclear program by raising the potential cost of any future strike by Israel or the United States.

He said recent military operations significantly degraded Iran's missile capabilities and set back production of long-range missiles that could eventually threaten the United States.

Dubowitz said the key question now is how quickly Iran can rebuild its missile and nuclear programs, adding that Iran's path to a deployable nuclear weapon is now more difficult than it would have been before the war.

Housing and Urban Development Secretary Scott Turner defended the Trump administration's approach to Iran on Friday, arguing that preventing Tehran from obtaining a nuclear weapon is more important than concerns about rising interest rates and housing affordability.

Speaking to Fox News after a housing event in Iowa, Turner acknowledged that the conflict with Iran has contributed to economic uncertainty but said the stakes extend far beyond mortgage rates.

"If an evil regime has a nuclear weapon, Americans will be having totally different conversations than interest rates and housing affordability," Turner said.

Turner said the administration remains focused on domestic economic issues, including reducing housing costs, while also ensuring Iran does not obtain a nuclear weapon.

"We have to make sure America is safe," Turner added. "If America is not safe, then the conversations will be about things far greater than mortgage rates and interest rates."

His comments came as President Donald Trump weighs next steps in negotiations aimed at ending the conflict and preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

Commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz may not return to prewar levels even if the United States and Iran reach an agreement to end the conflict, according to shipping and energy analysts.

Experts told CNBC that shipowners are likely to remain cautious about transiting the waterway due to concerns that fighting could resume and uncertainty over Iran's future role in managing access through the strait.

"Any end to the conflict that leaves Iran exercising operational control and influence over the Strait will result in appreciably lower flows through the waterway in our view," RBC Capital Markets strategist Helima Croft said.

The Strait of Hormuz handles roughly one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies and has become a central issue in negotiations aimed at ending the war.

Analysts also pointed to the Red Sea shipping crisis, where vessel traffic remains below pre-conflict levels more than two years after attacks by Iran-backed Houthi militants disrupted commercial routes.

The Foreign Desk editor-in-chief Lisa Daftari argued Saturday that Iran is attempting to separate negotiations over its nuclear program from efforts to end the war, a move she said could undermine the Trump administration's stated objective of preventing Tehran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

Speaking on "Fox Report," Daftari said Iran has successfully shifted attention away from its nuclear program and toward the Strait of Hormuz, which has emerged as a major point of contention during the conflict.

"What they're attempting to do now is to separate the conclusion of this war with the conclusion of their nuclear program," Daftari said.

Daftari argued that any agreement must address Iran's nuclear ambitions directly and said she does not believe the regime will voluntarily comply with demands to halt uranium enrichment or surrender its nuclear capabilities.

She also said Iran's leadership is attempting to use the Strait of Hormuz as leverage in negotiations while preserving room to continue pursuing its nuclear objectives

President Donald Trump renewed his criticism of Pope Leo XIV on Saturday, saying the pontiff should be reminded that Iran must never obtain a nuclear weapon.

"Someone should explain to the Pope that the Mayor of Chicago is useless, and that Iran cannot have a Nuclear Weapon!" Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Trump's post came after Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson shared photos from a prayer event he attended with Pope Leo at the Vatican on Friday.

The president and pope have publicly disagreed in recent weeks over Iran and the broader conflict in the Middle East. Trump has defended military action aimed at Iran's nuclear program and repeatedly argued that Tehran must never be allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon.

Pope Leo has called for peace and diplomacy, saying earlier this month that "the mission of the Church is to proclaim the Gospel, to preach peace."

President Donald Trump's threat to "blow up" Oman if the Gulf kingdom didn't "behave" has exposed a rare rupture with one of Washington's most valuable Middle East partners — a country that has spent decades quietly serving as America's backchannel to Iran.

"The strait's gotta be open to everybody," the president said during a Cabinet meeting Wednesday. "It's international waters. Nobody's going to control it. We're going to watch over it. We'll watch over it, but nobody's going to control it. That's part of the negotiation that we have. They would like to control it; nobody's going to control it. It's international waters. And Oman will behave just like everybody else, or we'll have to blow 'em up. They understand that. They'll be fine."

The remark came amid a dispute over the future of the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway connecting the Persian Gulf to the Arabian Sea through which roughly a fifth of the world's oil supply passes. The Trump administration has strongly opposed reported discussions involving Iran and Oman over a potential tolling system or joint management arrangement for the strait, arguing such a move would threaten freedom of navigation and give Tehran greater influence over one of the world's most important shipping routes.

The comments reflected a broader dispute over how far Oman should go in its efforts to engage Iran as the two countries discuss proposals related to the future management of the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's most important shipping routes.

The Omani embassy and the White House could not be reached for comment on the underlying tensions or negotiations on the Strait of Hormuz.

Situated on the southeastern edge of the Arabian Peninsula, Oman occupies the southern side of the Strait of Hormuz and has long pursued a foreign policy distinct from many of its Gulf neighbors.

While maintaining close security ties with the U.S., Muscat also has preserved relations with Iran, allowing it to serve as one of the region's key intermediaries. Oman helped facilitate secret U.S.–Iran talks that paved the way for nuclear negotiations, has repeatedly served as a diplomatic channel between Washington and Tehran and has played a role in negotiations involving Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels.

"Oman's role as the Switzerland of the Middle East has advanced U.S. interests," April Alley, a senior fellow at The Washington Institute, told Fox News Digital.

"They have facilitated numerous rounds of talks between U.S. and Iranians," she said. "They were also able to broker a truce between the US and the Houthis in the Red Sea. Their neutrality allows them to be quiet facilitators when adversaries are ready to talk."

This is an excerpt of an article by Fox News Digital's Morgan Phillips.

Former Deputy Special Presidential Envoy for the Middle East Morgan Ortagus said Saturday that President Donald Trump remains committed to pursuing a diplomatic agreement with Iran but retains military options if negotiations fail.

Speaking on "Fox News Live," Ortagus described the Iranian regime as a difficult negotiating partner and argued that the administration is approaching talks from a position of strength following recent U.S. military operations targeting Iran's nuclear program.

"The president will always have an option to go back militarily if he can't get the deal that he needs with the regime," Ortagus said.

Ortagus said Trump has consistently preferred diplomacy and pointed to his decision to pursue negotiations after military action rather than immediately escalating the conflict.

She also argued that any future agreement must ensure Iran never obtains a nuclear weapon while addressing Tehran's support for proxy groups across the region, including Hezbollah.

Her remarks come as the White House weighs next steps following President Donald Trump's Situation Room meeting on Iran and amid reports that negotiations over a possible ceasefire and nuclear agreement remain ongoing.

U.S. forces disabled a commercial vessel attempting to reach an Iranian port after its crew ignored more than 20 warnings, according to a statement posted Saturday by U.S. Central Command on X.

CENTCOM said the Gambia-flagged M/V Lian Star was transiting international waters in the Gulf of Oman toward an Iranian port on May 29 when U.S. forces warned the vessel that it was violating the U.S. blockade.

After the crew failed to comply, a U.S. aircraft fired a Hellfire missile into the ship's engine room, disabling the vessel and preventing it from continuing its voyage, CENTCOM said.

"The ship is no longer transiting to Iran," CENTCOM said.

The military added that U.S. forces have now disabled five commercial vessels and redirected 116 others while enforcing the blockade as a ceasefire with Iran remains in effect.

Oman’s Maritime Security Centre warned Saturday that an “object suspected to be a floating mine” has been spotted in the Strait of Hormuz. 

“Due to the sighting of a floating object suspected to be a floating mine west of the Inshore Traffic Zone in the Strait of Hormuz within Omani territorial sea, the Maritime Security Centre urges all seafarers, fishermen, and vessels to exercise the utmost caution while navigating in the area,” it said in a post on X. 

“All maritime users are advised to keep a safe distance from any suspicious objects and report them immediately to the relevant authorities,” the agency added. 

U.S. Central Command said Monday that American forces carried out “self-defense strikes” in southern Iran targeting Iranian boats attempting to lay mines. 

Fox News Digital’s Emma Bussey contributed to this post. 

Lara Trump told “Fox & Friends” on Saturday that there is hope that the situation with Iran wraps up very quickly, we are hoping, maybe in the next couple hours.” 

The host of “My View With Lara Trump” made the remark after President Donald Trump held a meeting in the Situation Room of the White House on Friday regarding the war. 

"I think this president wants to do what's right. Period," Lara Trump said of her father-in-law. "He has never looked at things, 'well this is politically advantageous, so let me do this.' He looks at things as in is this right for America? Is this right for our future security? And that is 100% what you got with this Iran situation."

“Of course the president didn’t want to have a conflict with Iran just ahead of these midterms. In a perfect world, we wouldn’t have had to do this. But the can got kicked down the road, it landed in his lap and much like so many other things with this president, he is the one to get the job done, whether we are talking about Maduro and making sure that you know, he is held accountable, whether we are talking about ensuring Iran doesn’t have a nuclear weapon,” she said. 

“Obviously the hope is that this wraps up very quickly, we are hoping, maybe in the next couple hours we get a solution here, but he is going to do what’s right no matter what,” Lara Trump added. 

Her interview with the president is set to air at 9 p.m. ET on Saturday. 

During the interview, Lara Trump said “I’d imagine if you could have timed things perfectly, having a conflict just in front of the midterm elections at time like this, isn’t ideal.” 

“So you have really a very small window, so if you wanted to play that game then you would wait until the midterms are over and then the following hour, you'll attack Iran because they cannot have a nuclear weapon, most people agree with me on that,” Trump responded. 

“But then it gets maybe carried into, you know, the next election whether it’s a midterm or not. So you have a very short window for doing anything having to do with war. But I don’t view that window, I view it I have to do what’s right,” he added.

Mohsen Rezaei, a military advisor to Iran’s supreme leader, claimed Saturday that President Donald Trump is “betraying diplomacy” in U.S.-Iran talks. 

“By continuing the naval blockade and making excessive demands in negotiations, he has once again proven that he is not inclined toward negotiation and is pursuing other objectives,” Rezaei wrote on X. 

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said earlier Saturday that the “ironclad” U.S. military blockade of Iranian ports has “put the real pressure on Iran.” 

The blockade went into effect on April 13, and on Friday, U.S. Central Command said 115 commercial vessels have been redirected. 

U.S. Central Command released photos Saturday of a Marine Corps F-35B stealth fighter landing on the flight deck of USS Tripoli as it transited the Arabian Sea. 

“The F-35B is designed to perform short takeoffs and vertical landings,” CENTCOM said. 

In April, Marines were seen departing the USS Tripoli by helicopter to seize and board the M/V Touska, an Iranian-flagged container ship that tried to breach the U.S. military blockade of Iranian ports. 

The Israel Defense Forces announced that it “attacked and destroyed an artillery headquarters of the Hezbollah terror organization in the Al-Shuwaya area in southern Lebanon” on Friday. 

“Following the strike, secondary explosions were identified, indicating the presence of weaponry inside the structure,” the IDF added in post on X. “The headquarters was attacked after it was identified that Hezbollah militants were present in the area.” 

The IDF released a video showing massive explosions unfolding at the facility as it was struck. 

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said Saturday that the “ironclad” U.S. military blockade of Iranian ports has “put the real pressure on Iran.” 

Speaking in Singapore, Hegseth said the blockade, which began on April 13, is “very much still in place.” 

"They want to say that they control the strait, but we do, and everything behind the scenes shows that we are in control when it comes to that, including how the dynamics of the negotiation are coming together,” Hegseth said regarding the Strait of Hormuz.

“I mean, this is a high-stakes negotiation. We've got the best negotiator in the world leading it. Iran may not want to give up their nuclear ambitions, but we believe at the table they can and will over time, given the right set of incentives,” Hegseth later said. “But the most incentive is the capabilities we have there right now, which they can't ultimately defend against at any real level, so those are decisions in the future the president will make based on how this ends, but I feel confident that he'll get to a deal that serves the interests of the American people.” 

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said Saturday that President Donald Trump is “laser-focused” on reaching a “great deal” with Iran. 

“Any deal that the president is willing to make, he's only going to make it if he believes it's a great deal for our country and the security of the world,” Hegseth said before departing Singapore, where he attended the Shangri-La Dialogue, a major Indo-Pacific security summit. 

Hegseth said there is “only one president who is willing to lay it out on the line and ensure after 47 years that Iran is not capable" of having a nuclear weapon.

“You saw it in how he's been talking about it publicly, those goal posts haven't shifted at all, which is the expectation [of] the American people, and what we've stated to Iran. So, in the middle of negotiations, the closer they come to that reality, both now and into the future, the closer we're going to get to that kind of a deal,” Hegseth continued. 

“Also having been in the room with him, I know he means it when he looks in the camera in the Cabinet Room and said they can either do this now through a deal, and we think we're a good place to make that deal, or they can deal with the War Department, and we are prepared,” Hegseth added. “We're postured even stronger today than we were on day one to address it that way if we have to, but he'd prefer not to.”

“So, Iran knows very, very clearly what our expectations are, and that's on the negotiating team to deliver. They're coming in our direction. The talks have been productive. I think they know where it needs to go, and I'm quite confident with this with our president, who makes nothing but great deals, that ultimately it'll be something he's proud to defend, that ensures that Iran, which everyone knows, should not have a nuclear weapon,” Hegseth concluded.

Israel’s military said overnight that it destroyed a launcher “from which Hezbollah fired rockets toward northern Israel.”

The IDF posted a short video on X showing the strike. Israeli forces have been hitting back in response to provocations from the Iran-backed Lebanese terrorist group in recent weeks.

The IDF later said, “Following the alerts that were activated a short while ago in several areas in the north of the country, a launch that crossed from Lebanon into the country's territory was intercepted.”

IDF Chief of the General Staff Lt. Gen Eyal Zamir had said Friday that 2,500 Hezbollah terrorists have been eliminated since the start of Operation Roaring Lion against Iran on Feb. 28.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) released video Friday that it says shows Hezbollah rockets striking a church in southern Lebanon overnight.

According to the IDF, several rockets launched by Hezbollah hit Saint Georges Orthodox Church in the Christian village of Marjaayoun.

“This incident further proves how Hezbollah continues to endanger and harm Lebanese civilians,” the IDF said in a statement.

The military added that Israeli troops were not operating near the church at the time of the strike.

The IDF also released photos it says shows the impact on the church building.

Yesterday's Fox News Digital live blog offers additional coverage of the conflict with Iran. 

Fox News Digital's Efrat Lachter contributed to this reporting.

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said in remarks the U.S. military is prepared to resume strikes against Iran if negotiations over Tehran’s nuclear program collapse.

Speaking at the Shangri-La Dialogue security summit in Singapore, Hegseth said he spoke with President Donald Trump Friday morning and stressed the administration is prepared to walk away from negotiations if Iran refuses to accept restrictions on its nuclear ambitions.

“Any deal will be a good one. A great one,” Hegseth said Trump told him. “And if Iran doesn’t want to make a great deal that ensures they don’t get a nuclear weapon, they can deal with the guy on my left,” he added, referring to the War Department.

“We are more than capable,” Hegseth said of potential renewed military action. “Our stockpiles are more than suited for that both there and around the globe.”

The remarks came hours after Trump met in the Situation Room to weigh next steps in negotiations with Iran.

President Donald Trump’s Situation Room meeting on Iran concluded Friday after approximately two hours, according to a White House official.

“The Situation Room meeting has concluded and lasted approximately two hours,” the official told Fox News. “President Trump will only make a deal that is good for America and satisfies his redlines. Iran can never possess a nuclear weapon.”

Trump earlier said he was heading to the Situation Room to make a “final determination” on next steps involving Iran and the Strait of Hormuz.

The White House declared a photo and travel lid at approximately 6:14 p.m. ET.

Fox News' Patrick Ward contributed to this reporting.