U.S. President Donald Trump has said any potential agreement with Iran must result in the country’s “unconditional surrender”, outlining maximalist war aims for the United States.
Trump made the remarks on his Truth Social platform on Friday, appearing to dismiss the possibility of compromise even as Iranian officials confirmed diplomatic mediation efforts aimed at ending the conflict.
“There will be no deal with Iran except UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!” Trump wrote.
“After that, and the selection of a GREAT & ACCEPTABLE Leader(s), we, and many of our wonderful and very brave allies and partners, will work tirelessly to bring Iran back from the brink of destruction, making it economically bigger, better, and stronger than ever before.”
Earlier, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said several countries are attempting to mediate an end to the war. He reiterated that Iran remains committed to regional peace while maintaining the right to defend itself.
“Mediation should address those who underestimated the Iranian people and ignited this conflict,” Pezeshkian said in a statement posted on social media.
The conflict has spread across the Middle East, triggering Iranian attacks across the Gulf and intensifying clashes between Hezbollah and Israel. The violence has also caused a mass displacement crisis in Lebanon.
Iran has launched missiles and drones targeting Israel as well as U.S. interests and assets across the region. Iranian forces have also struck energy facilities and civilian infrastructure in Gulf states, further straining relations with Arab countries.
The escalation has had global economic consequences. Fighting around the Strait of Hormuz has disrupted shipping routes, pushing oil prices sharply higher.
Iranian officials have adopted a defiant stance since the start of the conflict, signalling readiness for a prolonged war and warning they would repel any potential U.S. ground invasion.
Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, said in a message to Trump on Thursday that Washington’s strategy had already failed.
“Your Plan B will be even bigger failure,” Araghchi wrote on the platform X.
On Friday, Iran’s top diplomat shared an image showing the coffins of a mother and child whom he described as victims of U.S.–Israeli attacks.
“Our Brave and Powerful Armed Forces will avenge each and every Iranian mother, father, and child who has been targeted by hostile forces,” Araghchi wrote.
The conflict has killed at least 1,332 people in Iran, including 181 children, according to UNICEF.
The deadliest single incident occurred when a strike hit a girls’ primary school in the southern city of Minab on the first day of the conflict. Iranian authorities said about 180 pupils and staff were killed.
The Trump administration has sought to project confidence in the war effort, with senior officials warning the United States could unleash “missiles”, “death and destruction” on Iran.
In recent days, Trump has said he would like to replicate what he described as the “Venezuela playbook” in Iran — leaving the governing system intact but installing a leader more favourable to U.S. interests.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Friday that once Trump determines Iran “no longer poses a threat to the United States” and the objectives of Operation Epic Fury have been achieved, Iran would effectively be in a state of “unconditional surrender”.
Leavitt added that U.S. officials expect the conflict to continue for another four to six weeks.
On Wednesday, Trump said he would need to be “involved” in selecting a successor to Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, who was killed in a joint U.S.–Israeli strike last weekend.
Trump later told CNN that the situation in Iran could unfold “easily”, similar to events in Venezuela earlier this year when Delcy Rodríguez replaced Nicolás Maduro after the Venezuelan leader was abducted by U.S. forces in January.
Leavitt confirmed that U.S. intelligence agencies are reviewing a “number” of possible successors to Khamenei but declined to provide further details.
Rodríguez, who previously served as Maduro’s vice president, has since allowed Washington to sell Venezuelan oil and halted petroleum supplies to Cuba under the threat of additional U.S. strikes.
Trump said he would not object if Iran’s next leader were a religious figure.
“I’m saying there has to be a leader that’s going be fair and just. Do a great job. Treat the United States and Israel well, and treat the other countries in the Middle East — they’re all our partners,” he told CNN.
Under Iran’s political system, the supreme leader must be a Shia Muslim religious scholar.
Khamenei’s successor will be chosen by the country’s Assembly of Experts, an elected council consisting of 88 members.
