Donald Trump: the final decision on how to win against the Islamic Republic is still to be made

US President Donald Trump, answering reporters' questions about the war with the Islamic Republic at the White House on Tuesday, 20 October 2026, said the United States has done very well against the regime and now only has to make a final decision on how to win: the soft way or a not-so-soft way.

Trump added that stopping at this stage is not enough and that he wants to be sure the Islamic Republic cannot obtain a nuclear weapon for years. The remarks came a day after Benjamin Netanyahu's phone call with Trump; the Israeli prime minister had afterwards said the two countries have unfinished business with the Islamic Republic and will finish it together.

New US military deployment

The US president's remarks coincide with a build-up of his country's military presence in the region. Two US officials had earlier said that the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt and the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit will reach the Middle East by the end of November, a force that will add around 10,000 more troops to the region. According to Fox News, Trump is considering intensified strikes on the Islamic Republic after the congressional midterm elections.

Benjamin Netanyahu also said on Tuesday, in an interview with i24NEWS, that Trump had told him he could only do this together with him. Netanyahu repeated that toppling the Islamic Republic is the only way to prevent another war and added that there are signs Tehran has prepared a move to influence Israel's election next week.

The Islamic Republic's position

On the other side, Masoud Pezeshkian, meeting Field Marshal Asim Munir, the commander of Pakistan's army, blamed the United States for the tensions in the region and the disruption in the Strait of Hormuz and said Iranians do not trust the United States; meanwhile, Islamic Republic officials have described the attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz as a tool to hurt Trump before the US election. Abbas Araghchi also claimed that talks with the United States are continuing through mediating countries.

Trump says the question is no longer whether the United States will prevail over the Islamic Republic, but how.