Iran has not responded. That's everything we know.
Why this mattersSo think about what just happened here.
This is the president who ordered the strategy. And he's the one now saying it backfired.
The US has been bombing Iran since Operation Epic Fury started on 28 February 2026. On day one, the strikes killed Iran's Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei.
The whole idea was to wipe out Iran's top leadership. Either a moderate government steps in, or the regime collapses from inside.
So what did Trump just admit? That it didn't work. His own words: killing the people at the top has left the US with nobody to talk to.
And here's the problem with saying nobody wants the job. Somebody already has it. Masoud Pezeshkian has been Iran's president since July 2024.
JD Vance, the US Vice President, has separately said Washington still doesn't know how decisions get made inside Iran's leadership. Vance said any deal to end the war would need Iran to make real cuts to its nuclear enrichment. That's one report only, not confirmed elsewhere.
Trump also repeated his claim that US strikes wiped out Iran's air force and sank all 159 of its navy ships. That's Trump's claim. The outlet that reported it says it hasn't been independently verified.
And the war with Iran isn't winding down. Talks over maritime security and reopening the Strait of Hormuz are stuck. Both sides can't agree on what gets discussed first.
Ships are still getting hit. One report says at least 19 attacks on vessels since 1 October. Another, citing Reuters, says at least 12 incidents between 28 September and 5 October — the busiest week of the whole war. The two numbers don't match, and neither is confirmed.
Trump also said, again, that Iran will never get nuclear weapons.
So here's what we don't know. Whether this is a real shift in strategy, or just Trump talking. Whether Iran will respond. Whether America's own allies have even been told anything's changing.
Right now, the man who built this strategy is the one picking it apart.
