Trump says he’s granting Iran’s request to extend pause on energy site strikes

Washington — The United States will extend the pause on strikes on Iranian energy plants by roughly an additional 10 days, at the request of the Iranian government, President Trump announced Thursday on Truth Social.   

The president on Monday announced a five-day pause on strikes on Iran’s energy infrastructure in order to negotiate with Iran. The president said he’s extending that pause to the evening of April 6 in the U.S., or April 7 local time in Tehran. 

“As per Iranian Government request, please let this statement serve to represent that I am pausing the period of Energy Plant destruction by 10 Days to Monday, April 6, 2026, at 8 P.M., Eastern Time,” the president wrote on social media. “Talks are ongoing and, despite erroneous statements to the contrary by the Fake News Media, and others, they are going very well.”

On Monday, Mr. Trump insisted the U.S. and Iran have had “very good and productive conversations” on a deal, although Iranian representatives haven’t said the same. 

“Based on the tenor and tone of these in-depth, detailed, and constructive conversations, which will continue throughout the week, I have instructed the Department of War to postpone any and all military strikes against Iranian power plants and energy infrastructure for a five-day period, subject to the success of the ongoing meetings and discussions,” Mr. Trump wrote Monday on Truth Social.

The president has pledged to “unleash hell” on Iran if they don’t strike a deal. During a Cabinet meeting Thursday, U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff said the U.S. has offered Iran, through negotiators, a 15-point proposal for achieving a peace deal. Witkoff said he wouldn’t go into detail on what those points are. 

Still, the president said Thursday that he isn’t “desperate” to make a deal. 

“I’m the opposite of desperate,” he said. “I don’t care. In fact, we have other targets we want to hit before we leave. We’re hitting them on a daily basis. I don’t talk about, I can’t talk about specifics.”