President Donald Trump said Wednesday that negotiations with Iran are in their “final stages,” warned that additional attacks could follow if Tehran fails to reach a deal and repeated that an end to the war is coming “very quickly.” He added, “We’ll see what happens. Either we have a deal or we’re going to do some things that are a little bit nasty, but hopefully that won’t happen,” as the White House pushed the talks forward and markets moved on the prospect of a breakthrough.
The comments came after Trump told lawmakers at the White House Congressional Picnic on Tuesday that negotiations were moving fast. A White House official said he will travel to France for the June 15-17 G7 summit, underscoring how quickly the diplomacy has become part of the wider Western agenda even as military pressure remains in place.
The numbers show how much is riding on the talks. Brent crude futures fell $6.64, or 5.97%, to $104.64 per barrel by 1:45 p.m. EDT on Thursday, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures dropped $6.49, or 6.23%, to $97.66. The U.S. dollar also traded below a six-week high as investors grew more optimistic about a possible agreement with Tehran. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent called bond yields and energy prices “transient,” and said they should ease as the conflict winds down.
The diplomacy is taking place against a sharp military backdrop. U.S. Central Command said on Wednesday that American forces had redirected 90 vessels as part of a naval blockade of Iranian ports. On the same day, Iran’s Persian Gulf Strait Authority announced a controlled management zone covering the Strait of Hormuz, while parliamentary National Security and Foreign Policy Committee chief said Tehran was ready for “every scenario.” Parliamentary Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf accused Washington of trying to “start a new war,” and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said in a post shared on X that the U.S. was “locked and loaded.”
That mix of pressure and caution helps explain why both sides are talking about progress while still threatening more force. Trump said on Tuesday that he had paused new military strikes to “save people from being killed,” and Russia said on Wednesday it was prepared to help resolve the war between the United States and Iran. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said Moscow was ready to assist, adding another layer to a conflict that now has oil markets, shipping lanes and diplomacy moving at the same speed. Bessent, meanwhile, said he met in Paris with His Excellency Ali bin Ahmed Al Kuwari and discussed Doha’s resilience in the face of Iran’s attacks on its neighbors, urging allies to keep pressure on Tehran. For now, the clearest reading is that the conflict is being pushed toward a deal, but only under the shadow of force.
Trump’s own message leaves little room for ambiguity: he wants an agreement fast, but he has also made clear that if talks collapse, the next step could be harsher.
