US military conducts another strike against Iran after Trump says Iran
is 'negotiating on fumes'
[May 28, 2026]
By AAMER MADHANI and KONSTANTIN TOROPIN
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. forces carried out new defensive strikes on Iran
on Wednesday after President Donald Trump asserted that Iran is
“negotiating on fumes” and insisted that November’s midterm elections in
the United States won’t make him rush into a deal to end the nearly
three-month-old conflict.
U.S. Central Command forces shot down four Iranian one-way attack drones
that posed a threat around the Strait of Hormuz, according to U.S.
officials who were not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on the
condition of anonymity.
The U.S. military also struck an Iranian ground control station in
Bandar Abbas that was about to launch a fifth drone, the officials said.
Details about the strikes emerged after Trump, at a Cabinet meeting
earlier Wednesday, expressed confidence that his administration was
making headway on settling the war, even though the talks still remain
very much in flux.
The president is looking for a settlement that will reopen the Strait of
Hormuz and provide him with a credible argument that Iran’s nuclear
capability has been diminished enough to declare victory, winding down a
conflict that's been politically unpopular for Republicans.
But as things stand, Trump also risks finding that closure to his war of
choice comes with an unsatisfactory ending.
The emerging deal puts off many critical issues to be resolved later and
has already exposed the Republican president to fierce criticism — even
from some of his own supporters — that Iran's hardline leaders will
emerge from the conflict battered but emboldened. It all comes to a head
just as the midterm elections to determine control of Congress come into
focus and as Republicans worry that rising costs and fuel prices are
darkening the American electorate's mood.
But Trump on Wednesday dismissed the idea that the upcoming elections
would shape his Iran strategy.
“They thought they were gonna outwait me. You know, 'We’ll outwait him.
He’s got the midterms,'” Trump said. “I don’t care about the midterms.”
Trump acknowledged there's still work to do, but he spoke with a measure
of certainty that the two sides would get there.
“They want very much to make a deal,” Trump said. “So far, they haven’t
gotten there. We’re not satisfied with it, but we will be — either that
or we’ll have to just finish the job.”
The new strikes came after U.S. forces carried out what the Pentagon
called “defensive” strikes on missile launch sites and minelaying boats
in southern Iran on Monday. The U.S. has said it has acted with
restraint with both of this week's military actions in light of the
fragile, weekslong ceasefire that continues to hold.
Some Trump backers are skeptical
While Trump insists a deal is within reach, there appears to be daylight
between the U.S. and Iran on several key issues. The president is also
facing scrutiny from Republican allies, including Sens. Roger Wicker of
Mississippi, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Ted Cruz of Texas, who
have said the terms seem too favorable to Tehran.
They're balking at aspects of the deal that have emerged publicly that
they say too closely resemble the nuclear agreement reached with Iran by
Democratic President Barack Obama, which Trump scrapped during his first
term.
Under the potential deal, Tehran would agree to give up its stockpile of
highly enriched uranium — a key Trump demand — in return for sanctions
relief. That's according to two regional officials and one senior Trump
administration official, all of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity
to discuss the sensitive negotiations.
One regional official, with direct knowledge of the negotiations, said
how Iran would give up the uranium would be subject to further talks
during a 60-day period. Some would likely be diluted, while the rest
would be transferred to a third country, the official said.
But Trump said Wednesday that he “wouldn’t be comfortable” with either
Russia or China taking Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium. The
two countries have the closest relations with Tehran, and nuclear
analysts have said they could be a potential acceptable third party to
the Iranian Republic to take possession of the enriched uranium as part
of a potential deal.
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President Donald Trump, center right, attends a Cabinet meeting in
the Cabinet Room, at the White House, Wednesday, May 27, 2026, in
Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
Iran has 440.9 kilograms (972 pounds) of uranium that is enriched up
to 60% purity, a short, technical step from weapons-grade levels of
90%, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency. Iran has
not publicly committed to giving up its uranium.
How Trump's plan affects Israel's war in Lebanon
Another key issue unresolved is whether the ceasefire will also
cover Israel’s operations against Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed
militant group in Lebanon. Iran has insisted that Lebanon must be
covered by any ceasefire agreement negotiated with the United
States.
The administration appears to leave some wiggle room on the Lebanon
question. The emerging memorandum of understanding calls for a
ceasefire between the U.S. and its allies against Iran and its
proxies, such as Hezbollah, but also underscores Israel's right to
act against imminent threats and in self-defense.
Israel's military and Iran-backed militant Hezbollah group continue
to clash along a strategic river in southern Lebanon as Israeli
troops pushed farther north.
Jonathan Conricus, a former spokesperson for the Israel Defense
Forces, said Israel expects that Iran would quickly move to direct
any sanctions relief to restore its military capability and boost
proxy groups, including Hezbollah and Hamas in Gaza.
“We’re not done fighting, because the Iranian regime isn’t done,”
said Conricus, who is a senior fellow with the Foundation for
Defense of Democracies, a hawkish Washington think tank.
‘Stunned silence’ as Trump ties Abraham Accords to Iran deal
Trump on Wednesday also reinforced his call that the deal should
include a requirement for several additional countries, including
Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Pakistan, to join the Abraham
Accords, the U.S.-brokered agreements from Trump’s first term aimed
at normalizing diplomatic and economic relations with Israel.
“We’re, you know, requesting strongly that they join,” Trump said.
Trump’s optimism that the other Middle Eastern and majority-Muslim
countries could soon sign on to the accords might be overly
ambitious.
For example, Saudi Arabia, the most significant power in the Arab
world and long seen as the biggest prize for the normalization
effort, has insisted that establishing a guaranteed path to a
Palestinian state remains a precondition. It's something that Israel
vehemently opposes.
Trump pushed for the Abraham Accords during a call with leaders of
Mideast allies over the weekend.
Barbara Leaf, a retired U.S. ambassador to the United Arab Emirates
and senior State Department official during President Joe Biden’s
Democratic administration, said officials from Gulf countries who
were on the call told her that Trump’s pitch was greeted by “stunned
silence.”
A person familiar with the call disputed that characterization and
said that some regional allies responded positively to the
president’s call to join the accords. The person spoke on the
condition of anonymity about the private conversation.
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AP writers Matthew Lee, Michelle L. Price and Darlene Superville in
Washington, Bill Barrow in Atlanta, Meg Kinnard in Columbia, S.C.,
Samy Magdy in Cairo and Melanie Lidman in Jerusalem contributed to
this report.
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