WASHINGTON (The Thursday Times) — US President Donald Trump said on Monday that Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Kuwait would prefer the naval blockade of Iran to continue, and that the United States was “locked and loaded” if events in the Middle East changed, after what he called an “excellent conversation” with Qatar’s prime minister.
“Most importantly, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, and others, would prefer the status quo, in other words, a continuation of the Greatest Naval Blockade in History, and the new Operation Iron Gate — Therefore, Land and Sea,” Trump wrote on Truth Social after speaking to Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani. The claim is Trump’s own; his statement did not quote any of the Gulf governments.
“All have agreed that Iran cannot have a Nuclear Weapon — That is non-negotiable!” he wrote.
The warning: “Should there be any change with respect to developments in the Middle East, the United States of America is ‘locked and loaded’ and ready to go. At this point, however, that seems to be quite unlikely,” Trump wrote, adding: “We are seeing positive momentum toward an end to this Conflict.” His statement gave no date for any new talks with Iran.
The blockade: the “Operation Iron Gate” in Trump’s statement appears to refer to Task Force Iron Gate, which US Central Command formed on Saturday to stop Iran moving weapons, sanctioned materials and money across its land borders and the Caspian Sea. It extends on land the naval blockade of Iranian ports that the US announced in July.
The mediation: Sheikh Mohammed, who is also Qatar’s foreign minister, was due at the White House on Monday. Qatar and Pakistan have been carrying messages between Washington and Tehran, and Vice President JD Vance has been speaking almost every day to Field Marshal Asim Munir and to the Qatari prime minister. Trump’s statement did not mention Pakistan.
The two sides remain far apart in public. Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman, Esmaeil Baghaei, said on Monday that Tehran’s two-day proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz still stood if Washington lifted sanctions and the naval blockade. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Sunday that the two sides were not on the verge of a breakthrough and called Iran’s demands unacceptable.
