President Donald Trump on Monday declared that the fragile ceasefire with Iran was on “massive life support” with only a “1% chance of living” after rejecting Tehran’s latest proposal as “garbage” and “totally unacceptable,” while weighing a renewed and expanded “Project Freedom” operation in the Strait of Hormuz that he warned would be “only a piece” of broader potential U.S. action.
Speaking from the Oval Office after reviewing Tehran’s latest response to the American proposal aimed at ending the conflict and dismantling Iran’s nuclear threat, Trump blasted the regime’s proposal as “garbage” and signaled the increasingly fragile ceasefire may be nearing collapse.
Trump described the ceasefire as “unbelievably weak” after reviewing what he said was a “piece of garbage” proposal submitted by Tehran.
“I would call it the weakest right now,” Trump said. “I didn’t even finish reading it.”
The president went on to compare the ceasefire to a patient with virtually no chance of survival.
“I would say the ceasefire is on massive life support,” Trump declared. “Where the doctor walks in and says, ‘Sir, your loved one has approximately a 1% chance of living.’”
In a separate phone interview with Fox News correspondent John Roberts, Trump said he is actively considering reviving “Project Freedom,” the American-led maritime operation launched this month to help escort commercial vessels through the Iran-blocked Strait of Hormuz before it was temporarily paused amid negotiations.
But Trump warned that any renewed operation would extend well beyond escort missions alone.
Roberts reported that Trump said U.S. Navy efforts guiding ships through the strategic waterway would be “only a piece of it,” though the president declined to elaborate on what additional military measures could accompany the operation.
Trump similarly told CBS News that Washington could “easily go back” to Project Freedom — or potentially pursue “something much more severe.”
The remarks came as Trump convened a high-level national security meeting Monday with Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, War Secretary Pete Hegseth, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine, special envoy Steve Witkoff, and other senior officials to discuss next steps regarding Iran.
Axios, citing administration officials, reported Monday that renewed military action against Iran is again under serious consideration after negotiations appeared to deadlock following Tehran’s latest response.
Additional reporting from Israeli outlets similarly indicated the White House increasingly believes Iran’s proposal failed to provide a path toward the broader agreement Trump has demanded.
One administration official told the outlet Trump was preparing to “tune them up a bit,” while another added: “I think we all know where this is going.”
Trump repeatedly emphasized Monday that the administration’s position remains unchanged: Iran will not be permitted to obtain a nuclear weapon.
“I have a plan,” Trump declared from the Oval Office. “Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon.”
Trump also dismissed suggestions that mounting international pressure or prolonged negotiations would force the United States to back down.
“They think that I’ll get tired of this, or I’ll get bored, or I’ll have some pressure,” Trump said. “But there’s no pressure at all. We’re going to have a complete victory.”
Trump further revealed Monday that Iranian negotiators had indicated Tehran was prepared to allow the United States to retrieve its highly enriched uranium stockpile before ultimately omitting the concession from its formal response.
“They did two days ago,” Trump said when asked if Iran had agreed to relinquish its enriched uranium. “But they changed their mind because they didn’t put it in the paper.”
Trump said Iranian negotiators told the administration that Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium — which the president has repeatedly referred to as “nuclear dust” — had become buried so deeply following American strikes that Tehran no longer possessed the capability to retrieve it independently.
“They told me, ‘You’re getting it, but you’re going to have to take it out,’” Trump said.
“The site was so obliterated that there’s only one or two countries in the world that could get it.”
“You and China are the only two countries in the world that could take it out,” Trump added, describing what he said Iranian negotiators told the United States.
Trump also portrayed Iran’s remaining leadership as fractured and increasingly unstable following months of devastating military operations targeting senior regime figures.
“There are the moderates and the lunatics in Iran,” Trump said Monday. “The lunatics want to fight to the end.”
Trump additionally suggested Iran’s current leadership structure had become increasingly chaotic after multiple senior regime figures were eliminated during the conflict.
“The leadership — don’t forget, it’s third level now,” Trump said. “The first level is gone.”
Iran’s latest proposal reportedly demanded sanctions relief, release of frozen Iranian assets, removal of restrictions on Iranian oil exports, recognition of Iranian control over the Strait of Hormuz, guarantees against renewed military action, and an end to what Tehran described as the American “blockade.”
Iranian officials also reportedly tied broader negotiations to regional demands involving Lebanon and Iran-backed Hezbollah.
At the same time, multiple reports indicated Tehran refused core American demands involving long-term enrichment restrictions, dismantlement of key nuclear infrastructure, and transfer of highly enriched uranium outside Iranian territory — central issues Trump has repeatedly insisted are non-negotiable.
Iranian officials on Monday publicly hardened those positions even further.
“Uranium enrichment is not negotiable,” Iranian parliament National Security and Foreign Policy Committee spokesman Ebrahim Rezaei said Monday, quoting Atomic Energy Organization chief Mohammad Eslami.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei similarly described Tehran’s proposal as “reasonable and generous” while accusing Washington of making “unreasonable” demands.
“Our demand is legitimate,” Baghaei declared Monday. “We are calling for an end to the war, the lifting of the U.S. blockade and piracy, and the release of Iranian assets.”
Senior Iranian officials simultaneously escalated threats regarding potential renewed military action.
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf — who has also emerged as one of Tehran’s leading negotiators since the conflict began — warned Monday that Iran’s military stood ready to respond forcefully to any renewed confrontation.
“We are prepared for all options; they will be surprised,” Ghalibaf wrote on X.
Ali Akbar Velayati, a senior adviser to Iran’s clerical leadership, also warned Trump ahead of his expected trip to China this week not to portray the ceasefire as an American victory.
“We defeated you on the battlefield,” Velayati declared. “So never think you will be the winner of diplomacy.”
Meanwhile, tensions in and around the Strait of Hormuz continued escalating despite the fragile ceasefire formally remaining in place.
U.S. Central Command announced Monday that American forces enforcing the blockade against Iran had redirected 62 commercial vessels and disabled four ships since operations intensified in April.
Trump, however, signaled Monday that far broader military action could remain on the table if Tehran continues resisting American demands.
“We’re going to have a complete victory,” Trump declared. “Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon.”
Joshua Klein is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @JoshuaKlein.
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