Trump claims Iran gave up nukes as Rubio and Vance lead peace push - as he boasts: 'We killed everybody'
President Donald Trump claimed Tuesday that Iran has given up its nuclear ambitions as he said both Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio are leading peace negotiations.He also revealed that his Secretary of War Pete Hegseth was not so keen on there being a diplomatic resolution as the war enters its fourth week. 'Pete didn't want it to be settled,' Trump said. On Monday, Trump announced a five-day halt to US strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure while pursuing back-channel talks with Tehran through intermediaries, signaling he may be looking for a way out. But despite the dialogue with Tehran, the US is considering deploying around 3,000 troops to support a possible ground invasion, joining thousands of Marines already dispatched to the Middle East. Trump gave an update on Iran as he swore in ex-Senator Markwayne Mullin to take over the Department of Homeland Security from the ousted Kristi Noem.In the Oval Office on Tuesday afternoon, he was asked what made him start pursuing a ceasefire when he previously spoke of wanting to continue bombing Iran.'They're talking to us, and they're talking sense,' the President replied.He explained that the priority of the conflict was to ensure Iran didn't build a nuclear weapon.'I don't want to say in advance, but they've agreed they will never have a nuclear weapon,' Trump said. President Donald Trump gave an update on the Iran war during a swearing-in ceremony for Senator Markwayne Mullin who is now the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security Pete Hegseth and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles have advised Trump on the warWhen the President was asked if he planned to send envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to conduct direct negotiations with Iran, Trump answered that the US was already doing just that.'We're in negotiations right now. They're doing it along with Marco, JD. We have a number of people doing it. And the other side, I can tell you, they'd like to make a deal,' Trump said. Both Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio are considered top candidates for the 2028 GOP nomination. Trump has been cagey about who the US is speaking to in Iran, as droves of leaders of the Islamic Regime have been killed in the joint Israeli and US strikes.'We killed all their leadership and then they met to choose new leaders and we killed all of them. And now we have a new group and we can easily do that but let's see how they turn out,' Trump said.The President continued to refuse to name names, but he said Iranian leaders the US is dealmaking with gave the country a 'present.''They did something yesterday that was amazing. Actually, they gave us a present and the present arrived today and it was a very big present, worth a tremendous amount of money,' Trump said. 'And I'm not going to tell you what that present is, but it was a very significant prize and they gave it to us.' Trump said that gesture signaled one thing to him. First aid responders arrive to the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted the southern Lebanese coastal city of Tyre on March 24, 2026. Lebanon was pulled into the Middle East war when Iran-backed Hezbollah began firing rockets into Israel on March 2 A plume of smoke rises after an explosion in Tehran, Iran Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth gave an update on the Iran war from the Oval Office, with President Donald Trump revealing that Hegseth doesn't want the war to end 'We're dealing with the right people,' he stated. When a reporter guessed that it was nuclear related, Trump pushed back. 'It was oil and gas related and it was a very nice thing they did,' the President said. Another reporter asked if the 'present' was related to the Strait of Hormuz, the major shipping lane where Iran has been mounting attacks.'Yeah, it was related to the flow and to the Strait, yeah,' Trump answered. Trump had previously bashed NATO members, some of the US's most important allies, for not volunteering to help patrol the Strait amid the Iranian attacks. The President also had Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, who was attending the swearing-in ceremony, briefly give an update on 'military operation' in Iran.'People don't like me using the word war,' Trump joked. 'So I won't, but the Democrats call it a war.' After Hegseth's update, that's when the President revealed that the Pentagon chief didn't want the war to end. 'You know the only two people who were quite disappointed, I don't want to say this but I have to - Pete and General "Raizin" Caine,' Trump said, referencing the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
