Trump meets Qatari PM and calls renewed military action on Iran ‘quite unlikely’

President Donald Trump on Monday said a resumption of US military action against Iran was “quite unlikely” for now, while warning that Washington remained “locked and loaded” if developments in the Middle East changed. In a post on Truth Social after meeting Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman at the White House, Mr Trump said Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait and other countries favoured maintaining the US naval blockade of Iran.

“Should there be any change with respect to developments in the Middle East, the United States of America is ‘locked and loaded’ and ready to go,” he wrote. “At this point, however, that seems to be quite unlikely.” Mr Trump's meeting with Sheikh Mohammed was held behind closed doors on Monday. The US President has spent weeks trying to bring an end to the nine-month conflict with Iran. Tehran has effectively choked off traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway through which about 20 per cent of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas shipments passed before the war began.

The disruption has driven up global fuel prices and contributed to higher prices for everyday goods in the US and elsewhere. Meanwhile attacks on ships in the strait have continued to disrupt crude oil flows through the key Arabian Gulf shipping channel. The developments also come after Mr Trump’s Republican Party suffered a <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/news/us/2026/11/04/democrats-sweep-in-night-of-firsts-but-lame-duck-trump-could-prove-roadblock/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer" title="https://www.thenationalnews.com/news/us/2026/11/04/democrats-sweep-in-night-of-firsts-but-lame-duck-trump-could-prove-roadblock/">bruising defeat</a> in the US midterm elections, with voters giving the state of the economy as a major concern.

Mr Trump called the election's results "ridiculous". "It's not even a result. It's almost hard to believe," he said. "Now I wasn't on the ballot. I shouldn't take anything personally, but I will tell you, I thought it was ridiculous." In an unusual appearance in the White House briefing room later on Monday, he said there was “a good chance” the conflict with Iran could end. “We’ll see what happens. I don’t guarantee anything, but if we do have to go back in, we are locked and loaded and ready to go,” Mr Trump said.

Mr Trump said the countries he had spoken about agreed that Iran must never obtain a nuclear weapon, describing the issue as “non-negotiable”. He also said there was “positive momentum” towards ending the conflict and that the US would ensure its interests were protected.