WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump has told advisers that if diplomacy or any initial targeted U.S. attack does not lead Iran to give in to his demands that it give up its nuclear program, he will consider a much bigger attack in coming months intended to drive that country’s leaders from power, people briefed on internal administration deliberations said.
Negotiators from the United States and Iran are scheduled to meet in Geneva on Thursday for what appears to be last-ditch negotiations to avoid a military conflict. But Trump has been weighing options for U.S. action if the negotiations fail.
Although no final decisions have been made, advisers said, Trump has been leaning toward conducting an initial strike in the coming days intended to demonstrate to Iran’s leaders that they must be willing to agree to give up the ability to make a nuclear weapon.
Targets under consideration range from the headquarters of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard to the country’s nuclear sites to the ballistic missile program.
Should those steps fail to convince Iran to meet his demands, Trump told advisers, he would leave open the possibility of a military assault later this year intended to help topple Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the supreme leader.
There are doubts even inside the administration about whether that goal can be accomplished with airstrikes alone. And behind the scenes, a new proposal is being considered by both sides that could create an off-ramp to military conflict: a very limited nuclear enrichment program that Iran could carry out solely for purposes of medical research and treatments.
It is unclear whether either side would agree. But the last-minute proposal comes as two aircraft carrier groups and dozens of fighter jets, bombers, and refueling aircraft are now massing within striking distance of Iran.
Trump discussed plans for strikes on Iran in the White House Situation Room on Wednesday. The meeting included Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Gen. Dan Caine, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the CIA Director, John Ratcliffe, and Susie Wiles, the White House Chief of Staff.
This article is based on conversations with multiple U.S. officials who know the meeting, including officials with differing views on the best course of action. None of them would allow their names to be used, citing the sensitivity of the discussions involving military operations and intelligence assessments.
During the meeting, Trump pressed Caine and Ratcliffe to weigh in on the broader strategy in Iran, but neither official generally advocates a certain policy position. Caine discussed the military's operational capabilities, while Ratcliffe preferred to focus on the current situation on the ground and the potential outcomes of proposed operations.
During the discussions of the operation last month to seize President Nicolás Maduro of Venezuela, Caine told Trump there was a high likelihood of success. However, Caine has not been able to deliver the same reassurances to Trump during the Iran discussions, largely because it is a far more difficult target.
Vance, who has long called for more restraint in overseas military action, did not oppose a strike, but he intensely questioned Caine and Ratcliffe in the meeting. He pressed them to share their opinions of the options and wanted more of a discussion of the risks and complexity of carrying out a strike against Iran.
Earlier, the United States had been considering options that included putting teams of special operations forces on the ground that could carry out raids to destroy Iranian nuclear or missile facilities. That included manufacturing and enrichment operations buried far below the surface, outside the range of American conventional munitions.
However, any such raid would be highly dangerous, requiring special operations forces to be on the ground for far longer than they were during the raid to capture Maduro. Multiple U.S. officials said that for now, the plans for a commando raid had been shelved.
Army, Navy, and Air Force officials have also raised concerns about the impact that a protracted war with Iran, or just remaining poised for such a conflict, could have on the readiness of Navy ships, scarce Patriot antimissile defenses, and overstretched transport and surveillance planes.
The White House declined to comment on Trump’s decision-making.
“The media may continue to speculate on the President’s thinking all they want, but only President Trump knows what he may or may not do,” Anna Kelly, a White House spokesperson, said in a statement.
Even before the Iranians submit what appears likely to be their last proposal — officials said they expected it to be transmitted to the Trump administration Monday or Tuesday — the two sides appeared to be hardening their positions. Steve Witkoff, the president’s special envoy, said on Fox News that Trump’s “clear direction” to him and Jared Kushner, his co-negotiator and the president’s son-in-law, was that the only acceptable outcome for an agreement was that Iran would move to “zero enrichment” of nuclear material.
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