US President Donald Trump on Wednesday claimed on social media that Iran’s “new regime president” had requested a ceasefire with the US in the war that began more than a month ago.

Tehran denied that it had made any such request, calling his remarks “false and baseless,” though talks regarding a ceasefire are reportedly taking place.

The post came hours before Trump was set to address his citizens on the progress of the war. Cutting against the possibility of an imminent end to the fighting, a White House official told The Times of Israel that Trump will say that the war is expected to continue for another two to three weeks.

The official said Trump will list the war’s goals and “will give an operational update on the progress of Operation Epic Fury, which is meeting or exceeding all of its benchmarks.”

The official added, “He will highlight the United States military’s success in achieving all of its stated goals prior to the operation.”

Also on Wednesday, Trump predicted that the US would leave Iran “pretty quickly.” And Axios reported that he spoke with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, who has reportedly urged the US to keep fighting.

Amid Trump’s various statements about ceasefire talks and a possible imminent end to the war, some of his aides told Axios that they believe he is “mostly improvising, rather than following any clear plan” in the campaign.

On Wednesday, Iran launched its largest ballistic missile barrage at Israel in weeks, along with rocket fire from Hezbollah, sending millions of Israelis to bomb shelters before and during their Passover Seders. At the same time, the Israel Defense Forces said it launched an “extensive” wave of strikes in Tehran, targeting “dozens” of Iranian regime infrastructure sites.

Making the claim of the Iranian ceasefire request on his Truth Social website, Trump said it came from an Iranian leader who he said was “much less radicalized and far more intelligent than his predecessors,” and that the US will consider the purported offer “when Hormuz Strait is open, free and clear. Until then, we are blasting Iran into oblivion or, as they say, back to the Stone Ages!!!”

Iran has largely blocked the Strait of Hormuz, a key artery for the world’s oil supply, since the beginning of the war.

It is not immediately clear whom Trump was referring to as the “new regime president.”

Earlier this week, Trump confirmed that the US was engaging with Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, though he has not been appointed president and is not seen as less hardline than previous Iranian leaders.

BREAKING ???? Trump: “Iran's New Regime President, much less Radicalized and far more intelligent than his predecessors, has just asked the United States of America for a CEASEFIRE! We will consider when Hormuz Strait is open, free, and clear. Until then, we are blasting Iran into… pic.twitter.com/gDWFe0NiO4 Advertisement if(typeof rgb_remove_toi_dfp_banner != "function" || !rgb_remove_toi_dfp_banner("#336x280_Middle_2")){ window.tude = window.tude || { cmd: [] }; tude.cmd.push(function() { if(navigator.userAgent.indexOf("rgbmedia-app") > -1){ tude.setDeviceType("mobile"); } tude.refreshAdsViaDivMappings([ { divId: '336x280_Middle_2', baseDivId: '336x280_Middle_2', } ]); }); } — Open Source Intel (@Osint613) April 1, 2026

Trump: “Iran's New Regime President, much less Radicalized and far more intelligent than his predecessors, has just asked the United States of America for a CEASEFIRE! We will consider when Hormuz Strait is open, free, and clear. Until then, we are blasting Iran into… pic.twitter.com/gDWFe0NiO4

— Open Source Intel (@Osint613) April 1, 2026

On Wednesday, Iran’s actual president, Masoud Pezeshkian — who has been in the role since 2024, though he has had seemingly little control of Iran’s military or diplomatic policy during the current war — did say Iran is prepared to accept a ceasefire, but only if it receives security guarantees.

The US president’s post also indicated that Trump has again shifted his stance regarding the Strait of Hormuz.

He previously threatened to bomb Iran’s energy sites if Tehran didn’t allow the safe passage of all ships through the strait. On Tuesday, though, he indicated several times that the US was prepared to end the war without the issue being resolved and that other countries would have to step up and address the issue because it impacts them more than the US.

Trump will lay out the US goals for the war in his address at 9 p.m. Eastern Time (4 a.m. Israel time) the official told The Times of Israel.

The official said those aims are as follows: Destroying Iran’s deadly ballistic missiles and production facilities; annihilating Iran’s navy; ensuring Iran’s terrorist proxies can no longer destabilize the region; and guaranteeing that Iran can never obtain a nuclear weapon.

Trump said on Tuesday that his only goal for the war has been to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said that the goals also include destroying Iran’s air force.

The White House official said Trump will likely reiterate that the war will take another two or three weeks, in what would probably extend the conflict beyond the four-to-six week timeline that Washington has predicted. The war began on February 28.

Iran’s paramilitary Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps separately issued a statement saying the Strait of Hormuz “is firmly and decisively under the control” of its forces, adding that “This strait will not be opened to the enemies of this nation through the ridiculous spectacle by the president of the United States.”

Despite Iran’s denial, Axios cited three unnamed US officials as claiming that the US and Iran are indeed discussing a potential ceasefire deal that would see the reopening of the strait, though the officials clarified that it’s not clear whether a deal can actually be reached.

They also did not say whether the talks are happening directly or only through mediators.

Additionally, Axios reported that Trump spoke with the Saudi crown prince, and that the US president briefed him on the status of ceasefire talks, citing two sources with knowledge of the discussion.

The outlet also reported that US Vice President JD Vance on Tuesday “communicated to Iran through the mediators” the same message that Trump has said in public, namely that “The US is open to a ceasefire, if its demands are met.”

According to the report, Vance delivered a “stern message” to Tehran that Trump was “impatient, and there would be growing pressure on Iranian infrastructure unless the Iranians made a deal,” a source said.

Trump says US to leave Iran ‘pretty quickly,’ as aides say he lacks plan

After he claimed that Iran had requested a ceasefire, Trump was quoted by Reuters as saying that the US is “going to be out [of Iran] pretty quickly.”

He would not specify his timeline, saying “I can’t tell you exactly,” but he did say that US action has ensured Iran will not have a nuclear weapon.

“They won’t have a nuclear weapon because they are incapable of that now, and then I’ll leave, and I’ll take everybody with me, and if we have to we’ll come back to do spot hits,” Trump said, adding that he “does not care” about Iran’s underground stockpile of enriched uranium, because he will “watch by satellite.”

Aides told Axios that the US president like to improvise, saying Trump “likes to keep his options open, spitball with different audiences, then capitalize if he thinks he sees an opportunity.”

The aides said that they have been convinced at various points throughout the war that Trump was leaning toward a major escalation and at other points was eager for a swift end to the war.

“Nobody knows in the end what he’s really thinking,” a senior adviser said.

“They had a plan for the first week and since then, they are making the plan up as they go along,” a former US official told Axios.

Responding to the quotes, Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham defended Trump’s conduct, saying: “That’s the plan — for you to not have a clue.”

Another administration official went further to defend the president: “This isn’t 3D chess — it’s 12-dimensional. He contradicts himself regularly, so nobody knows what he’s thinking. It’s on purpose.”

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1 Trump: No deal needed to end the war, Iran won’t be able to obtain a nuke ‘for years’

2 Girl, 11, critically hurt by Iranian cluster bomb as repeated salvos target center

3 AnalysisIran’s regime remains defiant despite absorbing massive blows from Israel and the US

4 US academic’s tirade calling Jewish professor ‘colonizer’ found to be antisemitic harassment

5 Lapid: Netanyahu incapable of reaching victory, is dismantling Israel from within

6 As US weighs putting troops in Iran, realities on ground keep Israeli boots closer to home

7 UAE said pushing for military op to reopen Strait of Hormuz, is willing to take part

8 Funerals held for 3 of the 4 soldiers killed fighting Hezbollah in southern Lebanon

2026 US-Israel war with Iran

Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf

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