U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to reporters on the Israel-Iran conflict aboard Air Force One on June 24, 2025, as he travels to the NATO summit in The Hague in the Netherlands.
Brendan Smialowski | Afp | Getty Images
US President Donald Trump warned Iran on Wednesday that an “armada” was heading its way and that it would have to “make a deal” with the United States over its disputed nuclear program or face a full-scale US military attack.
“A massive Armada is heading towards Iran. It is moving quickly, with great power, enthusiasm and determination. It is a larger fleet, led by the large aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln, than the one sent to Venezuela.” Trump posted on Truth Social.
“Like Venezuela, it is ready, willing and able to quickly fulfill its mission, with speed and violence, if necessary,” he added.
Trump said he hoped Iran would come to the table to negotiate “a fair and just deal” regarding its nuclear weapons program.
“Time is of the essence, it’s really of the essence,” Trump said.
“As I once told Iran, MAKE A DEAL! They didn’t do it, and there was ‘Operation Midnight Hammer,’ a major destruction of Iran. The next attack will be much worse! Don’t let this happen again,” the president added.
“Operation Midnight Hammer” refers to a United States-led operation in June 2025 destroy several key Iranian nuclear facilities which, according to the United States, were used to enrich uranium for use in nuclear weapons.
This is not the first warning to Tehran regarding the movement of American military assets towards the Middle East. Last week, Trump said an “armada” was heading towards Iran but he hoped he wouldn’t have to use it. The warning came after authorities’ brutal crackdown on nationwide protests in Iran.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said As of Wednesday, he had not been in contact with U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff in recent days or requested negotiations, Reuters reported, citing Iranian state media.
The United States has used various sanctions targeting Iran’s illicit oil trade, as well as threats and military actions, in an attempt to bring Tehran to the negotiating table to end its nuclear program.
Trump pulled the United States out of an Obama-era nuclear deal in 2018, during his first term, saying the deal was “rotten and decaying.”
Trump said in March 2025 that he wanted to renegotiate a nuclear deal with Iran after reimposing a “maximum pressure” campaign on the Islamic Republic, but efforts to resume negotiations appear to have failed.
Iran was back on the president’s radar last month, however, after public unrest erupted over the country’s continuing economic woes and its conservative religious leaders.
Iran’s security services’ crackdown on protests, mass arrests and threats of execution prompted Trump to warn Iran that it would use military action against the country. if he “violently kills” demonstrators. He then suggested the threat had workedleading to a temporary de-escalation of tensions with the White House.
Some reports suggest the death toll during the unrest could exceed 30,000 people, but Iranian human rights group HRANA says 6,221 people have died, while more than 17,000 deaths are still under investigation. Total number of arrests reached 42,324, HRANA reported Tuesday.