President Donald Trump said Monday he has paused a planned U.S. attack on Iran after Tehran submitted a new peace proposal through Pakistani intermediaries.
“We will not be doing the scheduled attack on Iran tomorrow, but have further instructed them to be prepared to go forward with a full, large-scale assault of Iran, on a moment’s notice, in the event that an acceptable deal is not reached,” Trump said on Truth Social.
Trump said there was optimism a deal could be reached that would prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and ease tensions in the region.
“There seems to be a very good chance that they can work something out. If we can do that without bombing the hell out of them, I would be very happy,” Trump told reporters on Monday.
He further said that any agreement would need to satisfy U.S. and regional partners, while leaving open the possibility of renewed military action if talks collapse.
Meanwhile, some reports said the U.S. has rejected Iran’s new proposal, though this was not confirmed.
A senior U.S. official told Axios that Iran’s latest proposal for ending the conflict is inadequate and does not reflect meaningful changes from earlier drafts, particularly on key nuclear issues.
“The new proposal includes more words on Iran’s commitment not to pursue a nuclear weapon, but no detailed commitments about suspending uranium enrichment or handing over its existing stockpile of highly enriched uranium,” the report reads.
Iran, the U.S. and Israel agreed to a ceasefire on April 7 after 40 days of fighting that began with U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran on Feb. 28. Following the truce, Iranian and U.S. delegations held one round of peace talks in Islamabad, Pakistan, on April 11 and 12, but the discussions failed to produce an agreement.
In the weeks since, the two sides have exchanged multiple proposed plans outlining conditions for ending the conflict through Pakistani mediation.
Last week, Trump rejected Iran’s response to the U.S. peace proposal, calling it “totally unacceptable.” The U.S. has been demanding that Iran transfer its stockpile of enriched uranium to U.S. custody, a request Tehran has reportedly declined.
According to Al Arabiya, Iran’s amended peace proposal includes the conditional transfer of the country’s stockpile of enriched uranium to Russia instead of the U.S. SOFX has not independently verified the claim.
🔴 BREAKING: Al Arabiya has obtained leaked details on the amended Iranian proposal, which includes the conditional transfer of enriched uranium to Russia instead of the United States. pic.twitter.com/2nKjvdC8Jj
— Al Arabiya English (@AlArabiya_Eng) May 18, 2026
A senior U.S. official told Axios that negotiations are making little progress and warned that the situation remains serious.
“We are really not making a lot of progress. We are at a very serious place today. The pressure is on them to be responsive in the right way,” the official said.
The official said Washington is seeking more detailed commitments from Iran on its nuclear program and cautioned that failure to reach an agreement could lead to military escalation.
“It’s time for the Iranians to throw a bit of candy out. We need some real, sturdy and granular conversation [regarding the nuclear program]. If that’s not gonna happen, we will have a conversation through bombs, which will be a shame.”
Trump is expected to meet with senior national security advisers on Tuesday to review military options against Iran, according to Axios.
