Trump’s military pressure reaches the Gulf
The American president announced on his networks that an “imposing armada”, led by the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, is sailing towards Iran. A move calculated to force the negotiating table.
“As I already told Iran once: make a deal,” Trump wrote, recalling the so-called ‘Operation Midnight Hammer’ launched in June 2025 against Iranian targets.
He warned that a new attack would be “much worse” if there is no diplomatic progress. The fleet, according to him, is “larger” than the one previously sent to Venezuela and is ready to act “with speed and violence, if necessary.”
A cycle we know too well
This is not new. Tensions soared after the US withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal. Since then, Iran has been progressively increasing uranium enrichment, defying Western warnings.
Washington justifies its extensive military presence in the region as deterrence and protection of key energy routes. But analysts see another pattern: These carrier moves often coincide with attempts to force indirect negotiations.
The show of force seeks to reinforce Trump’s position in an eventual dialogue, amid growing regional instability.
Tehran responds: no to coercion
From Iran, the government rejected the warnings and reiterated that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes. They accused the US of resorting to a “policy of threats and military pressure.”
Iranian officials warned that any attack would receive a “proportionate response.”
The Iranian authorities were clear: they will not negotiate under coercion. Any future dialogue must include the lifting of sanctions and respect for its sovereignty. State media called Trump’s messages “psychological warfare.”
A repeated scenario, with increasingly higher risks. The question now is whether this demonstration opens doors or closes them definitively.
