Trump said the Iran war could continue in an easy, relaxed phase centered on economic pressure, as Iran’s currency and oil exports keep falling.
President Trump said Tuesday that he may keep the Iran war in what he described as an “easy, relaxed” phase, using financial pressure rather than a full military push. In a conversation with Wayne Allyn Root of Real America’s Voice, Trump said he was weighing how to keep squeezing Iran economically while saying the country’s leaders were acting in bad faith.
Trump said he had grown frustrated with Iran’s negotiators, calling them “devious” and accusing them of agreeing to terms before going public with a different story. He said the United States could simply continue along the same path and wait for Iran to weaken further. Trump also said another option would be to “hit them really, really hard,” but he framed economic pressure as part of the strategy already in motion. “We control their money,” he said, adding that Iran had once had a lot of it but now the United States has “total control” over those funds.
Trump pointed to Iran’s economic troubles as proof the pressure campaign was working. He said the country was dealing with 300% inflation, that its currency had almost no value, and that it was struggling to pay soldiers who were now leaving. He argued that such conditions could not last. The president also said his goal in the conflict was narrow and direct: Iran must not get a nuclear weapon. “So now they can’t,” he said.
“Trump said the Iran war could continue in an easy, relaxed phase centered on economic pressure, as Iran’s currency and oil exports keep falling.”
The Iran war has been under way since Feb. 28, and Trump has spent months trying to negotiate a way out of it. A cease-fire has been in place since April 8, and a memorandum of understanding he signed on June 17 later unraveled after Iran attacked commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz last month. That episode deepened the fight and pushed the conflict back onto a more volatile track. In that setting, Trump’s latest comments suggest he sees economic pressure as a tool that can keep working even without a dramatic battlefield escalation.
That broader context matters because Washington has long used sanctions, banking restrictions, and control over assets as part of its Iran policy. On Monday, the Treasury Department said Iran’s currency has lost about 20% of its value during the war and said Trump’s reimposed naval blockade has cut the country’s prewar oil loading from 1.8 million barrels per day to about .5 million barrels per day. Those numbers give Trump’s economic case a concrete backdrop and show how the White House is measuring pressure on Tehran.
Iranian leaders have answered with open defiance. Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei wrote on X on Monday that Iran is in a “strategic, fateful confrontation with Global Arrogance.” That stance signals that Tehran is not signaling any retreat, even as its economy takes a hit and the war drags on. For Americans, the stakes are clear: the administration is betting that financial leverage can keep Iran from a nuclear weapon without forcing a wider war, and the next moves will show whether that pressure campaign holds or the conflict sharpens again.
Frequently asked questions
What approach did Trump say he is considering for the Iran war?
He said he may continue with an “easy, relaxed” strategy centered on economic pressure instead of a major military escalation.
What evidence did Trump cite for Iran’s weakness?
He said Iran faces 300% inflation, a nearly worthless currency, and soldiers leaving because they are not being paid.
What did the Treasury Department say about the pressure campaign?
It said Iran’s currency has lost about 20% of its value during the war and that oil exports have dropped sharply under the blockade.
How did Iran respond to Trump’s remarks?
Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei posted on X that Iran is in a “strategic, fateful confrontation with Global Arrogance.”
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