Trump willing to use 'lethal force' on Iran if diplomacy falters: Leavitt | Fox News
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt stated that President Donald Trump’s primary approach to Iran is diplomacy, but he is prepared to use lethal military force if necessary. Trump has indicated a willingness to consider limited military strikes to pressure Iran over its nuclear program, amid increased U.S. military presence in the Middle East. Trump also emphasized that he personally makes decisions regarding potential action against Iran.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt says President Donald Trump's "first option is always diplomacy" for Iran.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Tuesday that President Donald Trump’s first option for Iran is "always diplomacy," but that he is "willing to use the lethal force of the United States military if necessary."
The remarks come after Trump wrote on Truth Social Monday that "it will be a very bad day" for Iran if the country can’t strike a deal over its nuclear program.
"President Trump's first option is always diplomacy. But as he has shown, he is willing to use the lethal force of the United States military if necessary. So the president is always the final decision-maker around here," Leavitt said Tuesday.
"And I've seen a lot of sensationalist reporting over the past day that is just completely untrue. And anyone speculating to the media hiding behind an anonymous source, pretending to know what President Trump is thinking, or a decision he will make with respect to action against Iran has no idea what they're talking about," she added.
President Donald Trump speaks during an Angel Families remembrance ceremony held in the East Room at the White House on Feb. 23, 2026, in Washington, D.C. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
The president told reporters last week that he is "considering" a limited military strike on Iran to pressure its leaders into reaching a deal over its nuclear program.
US ASSETS IN MIDDLE EAST POSITIONED FOR ‘HIGHLY KINETIC’ WAR, FORMER PENTAGON OFFICIAL SAYS
The USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72), a Nimitz-class nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, is one of the U.S. military assets currently in the Middle East. (Mike Blake/Reuters)
The U.S. has recently been increasing its military assets in the Middle East, sending the USS Gerald R. Ford and its strike group toward the region.
The USS Abraham Lincoln and three guided-missile destroyers already are in the area.
The USS Gerald R. Ford also has been sent to the Middle East as part of the U.S. military buildup. (U.S. Naval Forces Central Command / U.S. 6th Fleet / Handout via Reuters)
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"Everything that has been written about a potential War with Iran has been written incorrectly, and purposefully so. I am the one that makes the decision, I would rather have a Deal than not but, if we don’t make a Deal, it will be a very bad day for that Country and, very sadly, its people, because they are great and wonderful, and something like this should never have happened to them," Trump wrote on Truth Social on Monday.
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