US-Iran Conflict Heats Up as Trump Becomes Increasingly Unclear
Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia - The President of the United States (US) Donald Trump again sent mixed signals regarding the conflict with Iran. In the past week, Trump has vacillated, from opening the door to a ceasefire to threatening to resume military strikes against Tehran.
The changing messages come amid a new diplomatic push between Washington and Tehran. The Iranian government on Thursday confirmed it has received and is studying the US response to Tehran’s latest ceasefire proposal.
‘If you were in Tehran, you wouldn’t be sure whether the president is really serious about reaching an agreement, because his position changes every few hours,’ said Sina Azodi, Assistant Professor of Middle East Politics at George Washington University, to Al Jazeera on Friday (22/5/2026).
According to him, Trump’s inconsistency makes it hard for Iran to read whether Washington truly wants to negotiate or is preparing for a new escalation of war.
Trump earlier this week even said he was only ‘one hour away’ from a decision to proceed with an attack on Iran. But at the same time, he spoke about the possibility of a more permanent peace agreement.
On Sunday, Trump again reminded that ‘time is running out’ for Iran. Yet the following day, he stated that a new attack was ‘postponed’ while awaiting diplomatic momentum from Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Trump also said ‘serious negotiations’ were ongoing.
That signal emerged when the semi-official Iranian news agency Tasnim News Agency reported Tehran had submitted a new 14-point peace proposal to end the war.
On Tuesday, Trump again raised the tension by saying he was ‘almost ready to make a decision’ to resume the attack, but chose to give Iran extra days to renegotiate.
‘Maybe Friday, Saturday, Sunday, or early next week. We may have to deal them a big blow again. I’m not sure,’ Trump said.
The next day, Trump opened up two possibilities at once. ‘We are in the final stages of the Iran conflict. Either we reach an agreement, or we will do something a bit rough,’ he told reporters.
Amid the back-and-forth, US media reported divisions between Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Netanyahu is said to be pushing the US to continue striking Iran, while Trump prefers to keep open the possibility of a new deal.
Trump did not refute the report. When asked by reporters about Netanyahu, he replied, ‘He is a very good man; he will do anything I want.’
Trump also appeared to keep options open for maintaining long-term pressure on Iran. On Thursday, he reposted an op-ed in the New York Post by Richard Goldberg of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies advocating that the US maintain the economic blockade on Iran and strengthen control of the Strait of Hormuz.
Analysts at the Middle East Council on Global Affairs, Omar Rahman, say Trump is now in a major dilemma. He argues Washington wants a new deal that is stronger than the nuclear agreement from the Obama era or the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) that Trump abandoned in 2018.
But on the other hand, Iran now wields significant leverage through its influence in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital artery for global oil trade. ‘In the midst of this deadlock, escalation traps continue to loom,’ Rahman wrote.