Trump tells Financial Times the US has no immediate plan to strike Iran

US President Donald Trump has said the United States has no immediate plan to carry out a strike on Iran, while stressing that American forces remain prepared to act. He made the remarks in a telephone interview with the Financial Times, according to The Times of Israel, which described the call as lasting six minutes.

Trump appeared satisfied with the current state of the confrontation with Tehran. "We seem to be getting everything we want," he said, as N12's foreign desk also reported. Israeli news site Ynet carried the headline line, quoting Trump as saying there is no immediate plan to attack Iran.

Talks continue, force remains an option

According to The Times of Israel's account of the interview, Trump said talks with Iran are still going on, and that the outcome remains to be seen. He did not, in the reports available, describe who is taking part in those discussions, where they are being held or what is on the table.

Trump was also asked about hints from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that an attack could be coming. His answer balanced readiness against restraint. He said the US was "locked and loaded" should it decide to act, and told the newspaper "I'm ready, we're ready." At the same time, he suggested a strike might prove unnecessary, as reported by The Times of Israel.

The phrase "locked and loaded" is American military slang for weapons that are armed and ready to fire. Used by a president, it signals that the option of force has not been withdrawn, even as he plays down any plan to use it soon.

Who reported it

The interview itself was given to the Financial Times, the London-based business newspaper. The accounts summarised here come from three Israeli outlets that relayed it within minutes of one another. The Times of Israel is an English-language Israeli news site that ran the item on its live blog. Ynet is the website of the Hebrew daily Yedioth Ahronoth, and N12 is the news arm of Israel's Channel 12 television; both posted short Hebrew-language alerts on their Telegram news channels.

The three reports agree on the central point: no immediate US plan to strike Iran, and Trump's expression of satisfaction with how things stand. Only The Times of Israel's report includes the remarks on negotiations, the question about Netanyahu and the "locked and loaded" line. The two Hebrew alerts are brief and do not contradict it.

The wider backdrop

The remarks came as Americans were voting in the US midterm elections. The Times of Israel's live blog, alongside its report on the interview, noted that the first midterm polls had closed while most voting was still under way. The same live blog pointed to an AP survey showing voter unhappiness with US military action in Iran, indicating that American force has already been used against Iran and that the issue is politically sensitive at home.

For Israeli readers, the question put to Trump about Netanyahu matters most. Israel regards Iran as its principal strategic threat, and the prospect of coordinated or separate action against Iran is closely watched in Jerusalem. Trump's answer, as reported, neither endorsed nor dismissed the idea of an imminent attack, but suggested Washington does not currently see a need for one.

The Times of Israel's report was illustrated with a photograph of Trump at a campaign rally at the Five Flags Event Center in Dubuque, Iowa, on November 1, 2026, a reminder that the interview came at the close of an election campaign.

What the reports do not say

None of the reports describes what Trump means by "getting everything we want," or which concessions or outcomes he has in mind. They do not say what Netanyahu's hints consisted of or when he made them, and no response from the Israeli government or from Iran to Trump's comments has been reported. Details of the ongoing discussions with Iran, including participants and timing, were not given.