President Trump confirmed the existence of a direct U.S. backchannel with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on the same morning a 60-day ceasefire expired, and demanded Tehran raise "the white flag of surrender."
In an exclusive phone interview with Fox News chief foreign correspondent Trey Yingst on Monday morning, Trump laid out a blunt assessment of where things stand with Iran: the ceasefire clock has run out, the U.S. is talking directly to the IRGC, the regime's most powerful military arm, and Washington's core demand has not changed. Iran cannot possess a nuclear weapon "in any way, shape, or form."
The backchannel bypasses both international mediators and Iran's own political leadership, routing American communications straight to the Revolutionary Guard officers who hold real power inside the regime. Trump confirmed the arrangement during the call, offering one of the clearest public acknowledgments yet that the U.S. has sidelined Iran's civilian government in favor of dealing with the men who control the missiles and the proxies.
The 60-day ceasefire between Washington and Tehran expired Monday. The agreement's original start date and specific terms were not disclosed in the interview. But the deadline's arrival, with no extension announced, puts the two countries back on an open-ended footing, one that has already cycled through months of collapsed ceasefires and last-chance warnings.
Trump showed no urgency about the lapse.
"I have no time schedule. I'm not in a hurry."
That patience is paired with a sharp read of Iran's internal condition. Trump described the regime's political leadership as fractured, noting that multiple levels of Iranian leadership had been killed in past strikes. He framed the country as weakened but still performing at the negotiating table.
"They're good poker players, but they're dying."
The comment captures the administration's apparent strategy: let time and pressure do the work. Iran's leaders may posture, but the regime is bleeding from losses it cannot replace. Trump's demand, full surrender on the nuclear question, reflects a conviction that Tehran's leverage is shrinking, not growing.
Trump did not limit his remarks to Iran. He issued a pointed warning to Oman, the Gulf state that has played a role in facilitating talks between Washington and Tehran. His language was unvarnished.
"If Oman gets in the way, we'll bomb the s*** out of them."
The threat signals that the administration views any interference in its Iran strategy, even from nominal partners, as unacceptable. Oman has historically served as a quiet diplomatic bridge between Washington and Tehran, but Trump's comment suggests that role now carries risk.
On Israel, Trump struck a more restrained note. He said Israel should not be carrying out strikes in Gaza, where efforts continue to advance what the interview described as the next phase of a plan involving Hamas disarmament. The broader conflict between the U.S. and Iran has repeatedly spilled over into questions about Israeli military operations, and Trump appeared to draw a line.
On Israeli elections, Trump walked a careful line. He said it was "most appropriate" for him to stay out, but added that he might endorse someone. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has long maintained a close relationship with Trump, did not receive a direct endorsement during the interview.
Among the most striking claims in the interview was Trump's description of the U.S. relationship with Hamas, the designated terrorist group that controls Gaza.
"We have our own relationship with Hamas. They are giving up their guns."
Trump went further, saying Hamas fighters "fight well with us", a characterization that will draw scrutiny given the group's long designation as a terrorist organization by the United States. The president offered no detail on the structure or terms of this relationship, and no independent confirmation appeared in the interview.
The comments suggest a pragmatic, transactional approach: if Hamas disarms and cooperates, the administration is willing to work with the group regardless of its history. Whether that cooperation extends beyond the current Gaza situation remains an open question. The broader negotiation landscape between the U.S. and Iran has involved competing demands and counter-ultimatums, and Hamas's role in any final arrangement is far from settled.
Trump also addressed U.S. weapons stockpiles, pushing back on any suggestion that American military capacity is strained.
"What we've used is peanuts. We have a lot of mid-level weapons."
The remark appeared designed to signal both to Tehran and to domestic audiences that the United States retains overwhelming firepower. Trump did not specify what "mid-level weapons" referred to, and no further inventory detail was provided. But the message was clear: if the ceasefire's collapse leads to renewed hostilities, the U.S. arsenal is not a constraint.
Around the same time as the Fox News call, Trump posted on Truth Social reinforcing his central demand. "The number one Goal is, and always will be, that Iran cannot have, in any way, shape, or form, a Nuclear Weapon," he wrote. The post and the interview together formed a coordinated public statement: the ceasefire may be over, but the objective has not changed.
Asked whether upcoming midterm elections were shaping his military strategy, Trump was direct.
"Midterms have nothing to do with my thinking."
The denial matters because critics have questioned whether the administration's posture toward Iran is calibrated to domestic political cycles. Trump rejected that framing entirely. His stated position is that the Iran strategy is driven by one thing, preventing a nuclear-armed Tehran, and that he is willing to wait as long as necessary to achieve it.
But patience has limits. The security environment around these negotiations has grown more volatile, and the expiration of the ceasefire removes the only formal restraint on both sides. Escalating tensions in the Strait of Hormuz and the regime's fractured leadership make the situation harder to predict, not easier.
The backchannel with the IRGC is the most significant disclosure from the interview. By confirming that the U.S. is talking directly to the Revolutionary Guard, not to Iran's elected officials, not through Omani or other intermediaries, Trump revealed a strategy built on dealing with the people who actually hold power in Tehran. It is a realistic approach. Whether it produces results depends on whether the IRGC's commanders see surrender as survival or as humiliation.
Iran's recent rejection of American territorial claims near the Strait of Hormuz suggests the regime is not ready to wave any flag, white or otherwise. Trump is betting that time and pressure will change that calculation. The ceasefire is over. The demand stands. And the president says he is in no hurry.
When a president says he has no timeline but also no intention of backing down, that is not patience, it is leverage. The question is whether Tehran understands the difference before it runs out of options.
