US President Donald Trump may allow Iran to continue uranium enrichment under strict conditions if Tehran guarantees there is “no possible path” to developing a nuclear bomb, according to a report by Axios.
However, the publication also claimed that if Iran refuses Washington’s demands, Trump has been presented with extreme military options, including a plan to target Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, his son Mojtaba Khamenei and other senior clerical figures.
The report comes as Trump continues to expand US military deployments across the Middle East, fuelling speculation that diplomatic space between Washington and Tehran may be narrowing.
High Stakes for a Nuclear Deal
Citing US officials, Axios said the threshold for any forthcoming Iranian proposal would be “very high”. Tehran would need to convince sceptics, both within the Trump administration and across the region, that it has genuinely abandoned ambitions to produce a nuclear warhead.
“President Trump will be ready to accept a deal that would be substantive and that he can sell politically at home,” a senior US official told the publication. “If the Iranians want to prevent an attack, they should give us an offer we can’t refuse. The Iranians keep missing the window. If they play games, there won’t be a lot of patience.”
At the same time, the Pentagon is said to be preparing for worst-case scenarios. According to the report, military planners have outlined multiple contingency strategies should Iran refuse to compromise.
“They have something for every scenario. One scenario takes out the ayatollah and his son and the mullahs,” an adviser was quoted as saying, adding: “What the president chooses, no one knows. I don’t think he knows.”
The alleged plan to eliminate Khamenei and his son was reportedly presented to Trump several weeks ago.
Conflict Fears Intensify
The developments come amid mounting fears that the United States and Iran are edging closer to direct military confrontation. Officials on both sides, as well as diplomats in Gulf nations and Europe, have indicated that prospects for a diplomatic breakthrough are fading.
According to Reuters, Iran’s Gulf neighbours and its regional adversary Israel increasingly view armed conflict as more likely than a negotiated settlement. Meanwhile, Washington has reportedly built up one of its largest military deployments in the region since the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
