President Donald Trump says he’d prefer a deal to end the war with Iran, but U.S. allies say they’re watching his actions and aren’t convinced.
Even as his top envoy tasked with negotiating with Iran, Steve Witkoff, said Thursday the administration is prioritizing diplomacy, Trump has directed thousands of additional troops to the Middle East, ramping up expectations that the U.S. is on the cusp of a major escalation in the fighting. Trump himself said he would “keep blowing them away” while Iran decides whether to make a deal.
The mixed signals are sparking whiplash among America’s partners in Europe, Asia and the Middle East, according to eight diplomats from these regions, all granted anonymity to speak about sensitive diplomacy.
Their economies are suffering from what Trump has called an “excursion” — in some cases they are hurting more than the U.S. economy. And they’re frustrated that Trump and his aides aren’t clueing them in on their plans for ending the crisis.
“I have no idea what they are trying to do,” an Asian diplomat said, referring to U.S.objectives toward Iran and the confusing messaging from the White House about the possible next stage in the conflict.
The confusion comes as the U.S. deploys thousands of U.S. Marines and troops from the 82nd Airborne Division to the region. Seven of the diplomats said neither the White House nor the State Department have offered clarity about U.S. military intentions.
The officials POLITICO interviewed included representatives of countries that the administration has asked for help in its campaign against Tehran.
While Trump has spoken frequently about his plans for Iran, some allies are beginning to tune him out.
“Moving all those assets to the Gulf just to call them back — if a deal is actually struck — is a pretty expensive move,” a second Asian diplomat said. “I’m looking at what the U.S. is actually doing rather than what POTUS is saying on Truth Social.”
While many U.S. allies were frustrated by the U.S. decision to strike Iran — particularly without consulting with partners — some had started to see potential for a diplomatic off-ramp when Trump announced Monday that the U.S. was in talks with the Iranians and paused attacks on Iranian power plants and energy infrastructure.
The growing frustration since then suggests that Trump is losing that goodwill, which he needs from countries that he is calling on to help secure the Strait of Hormuz and bear with skyrocketing energy prices and the wider economic fallout.
On Thursday, Trump extended the pause on strikes on Iranian power plants, saying on social media that he was doing it “as per Iranian Government request” amid ongoing negotiations he said “are going very well.”
But Iranian officials have little trust in the United States, especially considering that they were engaged in talks with Washington both times that Trump launched attacks on the country, said Ali Vaez, a senior analyst with the International Crisis Group who is in touch with officials from the Iranian, U.S. and other affected governments. Tehran is worried that Trump is using diplomacy as a cover for more strikes.
If Trump "was serious about deescalation, he’d delay the deployments," Vaez said.
Asked for comment, the State Department referred to Trump’s social media post saying he was extending the pause.
White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said Trump’s “first instinct is always diplomacy,” but that if the Iranians “fail to accept the reality of the current moment, they will be hit harder than ever before.”
The U.S. and Israel launched airstrikes on Iran on Feb. 28, first with a stated goal of regime change and blocking Iran’s ability to obtain a nuclear weapon. Trump has abandoned his public push for regime change but has focused more recently on military objectives, which beyond Iran’s nuclear program include Iran’s ballistic missiles, its support for regional proxies and its ability to block the vital Strait of Hormuz waterway.
Trump has insisted that the “war has been won,” but the U.S. is sending amphibious warships, landing craft and thousands of Marines and sailors to the Middle East, prompting speculation among analysts and allies that the U.S. plans to capture Iran’s Kharg Island, which handles 90 percent of its crude exports.
A European diplomat noted that Trump may be looking to purposefully sow confusion as he works out how he will bring an end to the war.
“It serves the administration to both keep the option to walk away and claim a win, or to escalate and go deeper,” the European diplomat said. “It also shows nervousness. To be honest, I actually do not know who is lying. Maybe both.”
But it could weaken already tenuous alliances either way.
“The U.S. argument has changed and harmed its own cause and trust,” a third Asian diplomat said.
Witkoff confirmed on Thursday that Pakistan has transmitted Washington’s 15-point plan for ending the war to Iran, but it was unclear whether Iran would agree at some point to send officials to Pakistan for active negotiations.
Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Trump administration hopes to convene talks in Pakistan as early as this weekend, but they may or may not take place, according to a U.S. official and an Arab official.
America’s partners aren’t necessarily letting Iran off the hook. It was, after all, Tehran’s decision to retaliate by attacking ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
In a Wednesday speech in Washington, Sultan Al Jaber, the United Arab Emirates’ Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, called Iran’s action “extortion on a global scale.”
“Weaponizing the Strait of Hormuz is not an act of aggression against one nation. It is economic terrorism against every nation, every consumer, every family,” he told a gathering hosted by the Middle East Institute.
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