Trump says there will either be a deal with Iran or US will 'finish the job'

WASHINGTON, July 6 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump said on ​Monday the United States would either reach a deal ‌with Iran or "finish the job," renewing his threat of military action as Tehran projects defiance following the funeral of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Indirect U.S.-Iran talks ​ended last week without any public sign of headway toward ​a lasting peace, despite a 60-day ceasefire intended to ⁠create space for diplomacy following the U.S. and Israeli strikes that ​triggered the conflict.

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"We're either going to make a deal or we're ​going to finish the job. OK. And it won't be tough to finish the job. I'd rather make a deal, because I don't want to affect 91 ​million people," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.

"We can ​knock down their bridges in one hour, we can knock out their energy supply.... ‌They ⁠don't have any money now. We haven't given them any money."

A residential building, which was damaged in a U.S. and Israeli strike in March, in Tehran, Iran June 7, 2026. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council Mohammad Baqer Zolqadr called Trump's threat "delusional."

"Iranians are unfamiliar with the language of threats. So speak to the ​Iranian people with ​respect, otherwise ⁠we will respond in another language," Zolqadr said in comments carried by state media.

Trump spoke after Khamenei's ​weekend funeral where, rather than looking weakened by the war that ​began ⁠with U.S. and Israeli strikes on February 28, Iranians appeared to be defiant, united and determined to shape what comes next.

The 60-day ceasefire was intended ⁠by ​Washington to revive diplomacy on stopping Iran ​developing a nuclear arsenal.

Reporting by Bo Erickson and Steve Holland in Washington, and Elwely ​Elwelly in Dubai; Editing by Doina Chiacu, Howard Goller and Sanjeev Miglani

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Bo Erickson

Thomson Reuters

Bo Erickson is a White House reporter based in Washington, DC. He focuses on the Trump administration’s domestic, political, and cultural agenda, as well as daily news throughout the world. Previously, he covered Congress and US politics for Reuters, and before that, at CBS News. He is proud to be a Minnesotan at heart. Please send story ideas to: Bo.Erickson@thomsonreuters.com

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