President Donald Trump on Monday appeared unfazed by Tehran’s reported decision to suddenly pull back from indirect negotiations — talks that the two sides had said were making progress toward an initial framework for a peace deal.
Trump argued that Iran is the one “losing a fortune” and that the United States would maintain its naval blockade of Iranian ports. He asserted that Washington is in a position to outlast Tehran amid the economic and political challenges currently confronting the regime.
In an interview with NBC News, Trump suggested that prolonged silence between the two sides might be a welcome respite rather than a setback.
“I think we’ve been talking too much if you want to know the truth,” Trump said.
“I think going silent would be very good, and that could be for a long time.”
The president’s remarks came shortly after Iranian state-aligned outlets reported that their negotiating team would stop exchanging messages with Washington through third-party mediators.
Tehran publicly linked the suspension to Israel’s stepped‑up military campaign against Hezbollah in Lebanon, which Iranian officials view as a breach of existing truce understandings.
Trump, however, indicated that the United States had received no advance notice of Iran’s reported move.
Israel Targets Hezbollah Heartland as Lebanon Faces Wider Chaos https://t.co/fmzzuO261u via @ViewsNewsNow
— Views&News (@ViewsNewsMag) June 1, 2026
“It’s an appropriate thing to say, because they’re better negotiators than they are fighters,” Trump said.
“But they haven’t informed us of that.”
At the same time, the U.S. president struck a mixed posture of patience and pressure.
He appeared to rule out an imminent bombing campaign.
“It doesn’t mean we’re going to go and start dropping bombs all over there,” Trump said.
“We’ll just go silent. We’ll keep the blockade.”
He framed the standoff as one of economic endurance, suggesting the Islamic Republic has far more to lose from drawn‑out quiet than the United States does.
“I think I can wait as long as they want,” Trump said. “They’re losing a fortune.”
The president’s comments suggest the White House views Tehran’s reported move to stall negotiation as largely performative — a protest aimed at domestic and regional audiences — rather than a genuine rupture in bilateral channels.
Ali Imran is a Washington-based journalist, who has worked for leading world news organizations as a correspondent, expert and in editorial positions. He is a published author and poet.
